


Liddle Huntah

by skelico



Category: World of Warcraft
Genre: BFA is over so i'm valid to post this right, F/M, M/M, Multi, also im bad at ending chapters im so sorry, fic in which several OCs spawned from, lore-adjacent bullshittery, pretending that bodies work that way, private fic turned public, the siege happens eventually so there's your warning, there's smut but i promise nothing good about it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-24
Updated: 2020-12-10
Packaged: 2021-03-10 04:33:24
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 10
Words: 30,367
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27697670
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skelico/pseuds/skelico
Summary: A human scout is caught by the Zandalari and given the option to abandon her duty.Self-indulgence fic, written before fully understanding lore, don't @ me.
Relationships: OC/OC, Rastakhan (Warcraft)/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 3
Kudos: 26





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> several things to note here before some lore-abiding person kicks my door down--  
> \- this was a personal fic that i wrote just to get the urge out because that's what happens when you slip and fall into Thirst Hell with no friends to rp with  
> \- i started writing this before i even made it through all of BFA and had zero understanding of half the canon characters let alone how trolls work  
> \- i'm straight-up only posting this so that the guilt of updating it makes me write more for the two whole people that are currently demanding updates from me  
> \- no the accent is never consistent  
> also literally every OC made in this ended up being made on WrA-US later on
> 
> ok have fun

There had been reports of spies discovered all day, and while there had been no proof that any of them were there to make an attempt on the king's life, his current trio of guards were naturally uneasy when King Rastakhan decided he wanted to do a brief foot-patrol around the outer paths near Dazar'alor.  So far it had been mostly uneventful, at least until they neared the river. The body of a sabertusk floated past them, still bleeding out. The distinct sound of someone crying could be heard over the rush of the water, and all four Zandalari paused before Rastakhan began to head towards the source.

"Your Majesty, wait--" a guard warned, reaching out in a futile attempt to stop him from continuing on into the brush beside the path.

"I am not so feeble enough dat an Alliance dog could take me down.. maybe I should find you a new job if you are to be so jumpy, eh?" Rastakhan replied with a grin, only half-joking on the matter. But it was once he was several feet through the bushes that he came to a dead stop, and two of the guards did a double-take before rushing over to him. He held out both hands to stop them from rushing ahead, pushing against their chests to hold them back.

Mere feet away was a small Kul Tiran human, a hunter, knelt next to a small teal raptor (or maybe a large saurid?) whose scales were pocked with deep, severe bites.. and was very obviously at death's edge. She had been crying up until she realized she had been discovered -- by the King, no less -- at which point she had moved to curl protectively over her dying companion.

"Pl.. please, he's.. he's.. please, wait.. please.." she begged, not even making an attempt to grab her discarded bow. The raptor wheezed weakly and almost seemed to try to pull itself in front of her, and she petted over its little snout shakily but affectionately to deter it. ".. i-it's okay, just rest, it's okay.."

Rastakhan was silent for a moment before he approached further, both to the guards'  _ and _ the hunter's distress. Slowly, he knelt down next to her and the beast, and pet a broad hand over the feathers on its head. "This raptor is very young. Why did you bring such a tiny ting out here?" he asked, not looking up from the raptor's face.

"... w-wasn't my choice. I bred him, was trying to train him. My superior said he was trained enough and s-sent me out here. Got attacked by a sabertusk," she half-rambled from fear and distress, extremely tense at having the Zandalari king so close to her. She was going to end up just as dead as her raptor was about to be, she was sure. Even with this acceptance of fate, though, she kept her tone and body language mostly respectful otherwise. No fast movements.

"You did not refuse to come out here."

"N.. needed to. Needed.. gold. Needed food."

"Is that a normal ting for you?"

"Y-yes, uhm.. Y.. Your Majesty."

Rastakhan tilted his head with a curious hum. The guards sort of shifted their weight between their feet, antsy. ".. Guards. Take de bow and break it, toss it in de river. Arrows too." The hunter flinched at the command he gave, looking up to the guard nearest her with wide eyes as he approached to take her quiver. He noted her expression and paused, holding his hand out as opposed to just trying to yank it off of her. With deliberately slow movements, she slid the quiver off her back and handed it to him. The arrows were snapped as a bundle, either for efficiency or for a show of strength, then tossed in the water with her broken bow to be washed downstream. Once that was done, Rastakhan stood and walked back towards the path. "Give her de privacy to say goodbye to her friend. Then arrest her. Bring her to me." The two guards agreed, though uneasy, and saluted their king. A third guard walked with him back towards the city.

The remaining two guards stood outside the bushes, their backs turned to her-- though they did glance back any time it sounded like she was moving. Thankfully this wasn't often; she remained curled over her fallen friend, quietly apologizing to it, falling silent when it finally took its last breath.. before she broke her own silence with a distraught wail that was loud enough to make the guards jump. They looked back at her, sympathetic. Losing a companion beast was heartbreaking for anyone of any race. Once her cries had died down some, they approached her, and she looked up at them with an empty gaze. There was dirt on her fingers, like she'd tried to start making a grave but lost the ability to. 

The larger of the guards stepped back out for a moment and scanned the landscape before he called out-- and almost immediately, a  _ massive _ raptor arrived, adorned with armor fancier than the king's. Gonk, the loa of the hunt. The guard kneeled with respect. "I be sorry for disturbin ya huntin', my loa. But I hoped ya could assist wid, ah.. fallen kin."

Gonk took a few heavy steps forward to peek over the bushes at the human and the other guard. The hunter gasped in fear and nearly jolted into the river herself, if not for the other guard grabbing her arm. "I see. A shame the hunt had to end so soon for this one," the loa rumbled, his size permitting him to lean his head down and nuzzle the deceased juvenile raptor. With the most careful movements, he picked up the tiny thing in his mouth-- which only distressed the human more.

**_"D-DON'T EAT HIM!!!!"_ ** she shrieked, struggling against the guard's grip as he held her back. Gonk just gave a chuckle and began to walk off, despite the hunter's immediate descent into extreme hysterics. The other guard came forward to try to placate her, staying calm even when she repeatedly slammed her balled-up fists against his torso. Not like it really hurt him.

"Gonk know a place for fallen raptahs. He won't be eatin' ya friend. I promise, I promise." 

As her breakdown subsided, he carefully took her much smaller wrists in one hand and tied them together with a small length of rope. Had to be delicate... he was so much larger than her. He lifted her with little effort and placed her over his shoulder before starting to walk back towards Dazar'alor. Thankfully, she didn't struggle; she tired herself out from crying, plus there was absolutely no chance that she would be able to overpower one Rastari, let alone two.

She received plenty of dirty looks and obscene gestures as she was carried up to the throne, from Zandalari and the other Horde races alike. But the guards were quick to prevent anyone from trying to harm her-- Rastakhan had requested her to be brought to him, and they assumed that meant  _ alive _ . If he wanted her dead, well.. surely he'd also want to do that himself. More than likely, he wanted to interrogate her.

Rastakhan awaited her on his throne, leaning to the side with his head propped on one fist. Somehow, he made that stone throne look comfortable. As the guards brought her up, he motioned for the others around his throne to leave him, to give him privacy. The hunter was carefully set down between the guards and the king, dwarfed entirely by their statures and the size of the throne room in general. 

"I saw Gonk heading your direction before I came inside."

"Yes, Your Majesty. I, ah.. called him ovah to assist with moving de body somewhere appropriate."

"That was very kind of you. De hunter's companion will rest well. Now..." He turned his gaze towards the young woman. "What to do with you. I obviously cannot permit you to leave, but.. I believe it would be cruel to kill you after that display earlier."

The hunter remained silent, gaze fixated on the floor in front of her.  _ I'd be dead anyway. Just get it over with, _ she thought, fighting back the urge to cry further. Rastakhan watched her face closely, then motioned to the two guards to dismiss them. One opened their mouth to protest -- for good reason -- but a harsher look silenced them before they could speak. They hesitantly left the immediate area, but stood within sight just in case something happened.

Rastakhan stood and slowly approached her, crouching down when he was but a few feet away from her. She couldn't help but look at him now, eyes red and full of exhaustion. He simply stared at her for a long moment before he finally spoke, voice quiet. "So the options your superior gave ya were to spy, or to go hungry?" A nod from her just had him hum in thought. That wasn't really a very efficient manner of keeping your army's morale up. Though he was sure she was well aware of this, and didn't comment as such. 

"I tink I will give you two bettah options. You stay here, be my liddle assistant and do tings for me, and I keep you fed and safe. But I know that would be treason, for you. So I offer that, or a quick death, and send you to de Loa of Graves. He would treat you about the same as I would..  _ mebbeh _ ." 

The tiredness in the hunter's eyes persisted until the mention of being killed-- at which point her eyes got  _ bigger _ , and she shook her head repeatedly. Being treasonous and alive was better than just being immediately killed. Either way, she'd be dead eventually, so may as well pick the option that put it off for a while.

"F. Fffirst option," she finally replied, for the sake of verbal confirmation. Rastakhan chuckled softly and brought his hand up to ruffle her hair--  _ all _ of it, at once. Big hand. He stood and went to sit back on the throne before barking something at the guards in Zandali with a laugh, and they both gave him a similar look of uncertainty before going to fetch the human. This time she wasn't thrown over a shoulder, and was instead escorted beyond the throne room.

The trip through the interior of the palace was far less aggressive. The trolls within did not make eye contact with her, of course, but at least they weren't cussing at her. They had their own tasks to tend to. Eventually they reached their destination, a massive, decorated door buried deep under the throne room. The single guard standing there questioned the two in Zandali, briefly gripping his sword before they informed him of what was happening. A wary glance was all she'd get from him before he stepped aside, and permitted them entry into what the hunter quickly realized was Rastakhan's personal chambers.

It was as lavish as one would expect a king's personal chambers to be, with a large bed and plenty of bookcases, trinkets, and other decor. And yet, it still retained the look of every other building and room in the temple; the bed itself was raised stone with a hollow in the middle for the placement of plush bedding. While soft beds were very uncommon for trolls -- or so she'd been told -- it was understandable that the  _ king _ would have something like it. Luxury. Plus relief for his old bones.

There were a few side rooms, one of which was a large bathroom-- the guards brought her there, and the one that had bound her wrists crouched down to undo the bindings as the other one left. ".. De king wants you to get cleaned up, and stay here. You will touch no'ting other than what ya need to. De guard outside will kill you if ya try to leave. Got it?"

She nodded, shyly looking around the room as the rope was untied. The bulk of the room was taken up by a massive, inlaid tub with a fountain. From the looks of the steam rising off of it, it was placed over a natural hot spring Fancy. "... ... does he w-want me here for what I  _ think _ he wants me for?" she questioned, not entirely wanting to make any sort of eye contact as she asked.

"Couldn't tell ya. He just said to bring you heah. But, we Zandalari are above dat kind of.. ting.. I'm sure he'll talk to ya about it when he retires for de evening." The guard shrugged. He could speculate all he wanted, but. Wasn't his place to really give her any sort of solid comment about it. "Get to cleanin'. I'll bring ya someting to wear."

The hunter wandered closer to the massive tub, glancing back at the guard as if questioning whether she was supposed to use  _ his _ tub, or if there was another one somewhere. He just nodded at her with a little 'shoo'ing motion of his hand, before he turned and left. He was going to have fun finding anything that would fit her smaller stature.

By the time he returned, she had stripped down and was sort of... swimming... in the tub. It was the perfect size for the Zandalari king-- which meant it was more of a pool for the human, and it was difficult for her to clean herself when she had to keep from drowning. Even with the help of the seating around the interior edge, it was just a little too deep to sit comfortably. She'd also found soap, thankfully. But the guard's unannounced re-entry had her give a little shout in embarrassment and sink down, peeking at him over the edge as he got closer to put the clothing down near her. 

"Shy liddle ting! Hah! Don't be worryin'. I got you de smallest robe I could find, but it still gonna be big for you, probably.. you're preddy small for a Kul Tiran."

"I-I'm not.. pureblooded Kul Tiran."

"Dat explains it. Well, in any case. When ya done, get dressed an' go sit out in de main room an' wait for de king."

".. okay. Th.. thank you." 

She waited until he left again before she felt comfortable enough to resume cleaning herself. Getting clean was honestly.. really nice. Got her mind off of what had happened to her raptor, if only for a little bit. Once done and dry, she pulled on the clothing that the guard had gotten for her. Just a simple robe, perhaps one meant for a young mage. It almost reached the ground once she had it on.. if she wasn't careful, she'd likely trip on it. 

She made her way back out into the main room, looking around with a sort of apprehensive curiosity.. what was she supposed to do in the meantime? Maybe just.. sleep?  _ Obviously not in his bed, _ of course, but.. well, sleeping on the floor was fine. Very fine, in fact-- once she'd actually found a corner to curl up in with her back to the room, sleep came quickly. Emotional exhaustion plus hot bath made for perfect sleeping conditions.

It was hours later before she awoke to the sound of the massive doors opening, but the realization of what that meant completely flew over her head until she felt the presence of the king crouched behind her. He gently stroked her back with a single knuckle, as if trying to  _ gently _ wake her up-- but just being touched startled her, and she just about did a somersault into the corner as a reflex. Rastakhan was very mildly startled by her reaction, himself, but he gave a hearty laugh.

"Best not to sleep with your back to de door like dat. Next time it may not be me that wakes you." Not that anyone really was permitted to enter except himself, his daughter, and a handful of guards, but there was always the possibility of a spy getting this far inside. Even if it was an  _ extremely slim _ possibility.

"Sss.. sorry, Your Majesty."

"No need to apologize. Come, let us get some food in your liddle belly."

Rastakhan offered a hand to her, and she very meekly reached out to grasp onto one of his fingers before he stood and lifted her up to her feet in the process. His hand had been warm, and she could feel just how much muscle he had in that finger alone. It was definitely a good thing she hadn't lashed out at him in distress when he'd found her out in the jungle.. she'd definitely had been an easy kill for him, if the guards hadn't gotten her first. Once up, she withdrew her hands and kept them to herself as she was led out of the room. The guard that followed behind them was the same that had been so kind to her thus far, while the one stationed at the doorway remained there.

The hunter followed quietly, only now feeling comfortable -- or perhaps protected -- enough to let her gaze wander. She admired the various tapestries that lined the halls and rooms they passed through.. she'd heard Rastakhan had been ruling for over 200 years, so it was no wonder that a lot of said tapestries featured him in some manner. Some had creatures that she figured were loa, they were always very well-decorated and given obvious religious elements to their designs and what was around them. A few stood out; she recognized Gonk immediately, and saw another far larger dinosaur that was even more decorated than he was. Must be important.. or, must have been. Many candles lined the wall underneath where they appeared in the tapestries. The third that stood out was darker than the rest, a massive troll with obvious bone and death designs placed around him. That must be who the king had been talking about. 

Rastakhan noticed her curiosity about the loa tapestries -- she kept slowing down -- and smiled a little as he looked back at her. "... I see you are interested in de Loa. Mebbe I can teach you about dem later."

"Y.. yes, Your Majesty." It would be something to do, at least, if she were to spend a lot of time in that chamber. Plenty of books for her to..  _ try _ to read. They were probably all in Zandali, but maybe some had pictures.

The guard behind her chuckled. "Good to see dat Gonk did not permanently scare you away from de idea."

"... he's still scary." 

The comment made both trolls laugh goodheartedly. The guard ruffled her hair, this time. "He is one of de best friends you could have in Zandalar. He be very protective of those in his pack." She flinched as her hair was ruffled, and he eased up towards the end of the gesture because of it.

When they arrived at the dining hall, the few trolls inside immediately knelt in respect to their king. Rastakhan strode over to the kitchen after waving them off, approaching the chef. She bowed briefly in respect before turning her eyes to the odd one out. "... I hope you ah not here to be requestin' I cook dis human. I don't have any recipes."

The hunter paled and moved to stand behind the guard, a hand on his leg. His hand found her head and just rested there, as if to comfort.

"Hah! No, no. Humans are not the most appetizing of dishes, anyway."  _ That isn't helping, Rastakhan. _ "I came to find a liddle snack for dem. Dey will be working for me."

".. Pardon me if I am out of line, but for what purpose have you hired an enemy, Your Majesty?"

"She decided that giving up her ties to people that cared not for her was preferable to being killed."

The chef squinted suspiciously before moving to whisper to her king. "... I do not tink you a fool in any way, King Rastakhan, but dat would be a very easy way to be killed by a spy."

"She is unarmed, and alone. I do not worry. It is fine, Ra'tika."

"... If you are sure. Well. I picked some fruit dis afternoon, still needs to be washed."

The hunter perked up a little, peeking around the guard's side. "... I c-can wash them for you.." she offered, hesitantly looking up at the chef. 

She was given a squint in return, and Ra'tika shook her head. "Do not tink me rude, but nobody should be handling de food in de King's kitchen but me." She wandered off towards a basket of fruit on one of the counters, and picked a random one out to wash before handing it to the hunter. "Here."

The human took it and immediately bit into it, with zero hesitation. Didn't even know what it was until it was in her mouth. A mango. Sweet and juicy-- juicy to the point of it immediately dribbling down her chin and onto her robe. 

The guard scoffed, though he was smiling. "We just got you clean! You are like a bebbeh!"

"M'not rh bebbeh--" she half-barked at him, muffled by her mouth full of fruit. 

The slight show of aggression set the chef off, and she brandished a knife at the hunter-- only for Rastakhan to immediately reach out to grab the blade with his bare hand. "Calm yourself, Ra'tika." It was definitely not strong enough to cut the king's calloused palm, but Ra'tika released the knife entirely the moment he grabbed it. Rastakhan set it on the countertop.

"My deepest apologies, Your Majesty. It be out of instinct."

"I know, it is fine. But she is harmless."

"And  _ sticky-- _ " interrupted the guard, already trying to bring a wet rag over to clean the human's face and clothing as she aggressively ate the mango in his direction. The mango had given her a boost of energy that she sorely needed, and it was just enough for her to be able to just be a  _ perfect _ pain in the ass for the poor guard. But despite this childish behavior from both his guard and his captive, Rastakhan was pleased to see the human in slightly better spirits.

The hunter had eaten two (2) entire mangoes (and had her face thoroughly cleaned by the guard) before she went with Rastakhan back to his chambers to retire for the night. It wasn't until the door closed that she became uneasy with the thought of being in there  _ with _ him-- he was pretty much the single most important and powerful (non-loa) individual in the entirety of Zandalar, and she was just.. a Kul Tiran. A human. An enemy. Did he really trust her that much? Well.. it wasn't like she'd given him any  _ reason _ to think she was a threat. And she wasn't, anyway. Plus he'd been kind to her from the start.. her own honor code wouldn't let her even try to harm him. 

Awkwardly, she watched the massive troll sit on the stone edge of his bed and remove his well-decorated headdress, setting it safely on a display near the bed. There were spots on the display for armor, too...  _ ah. _ She should. Not be in here right now. Probably. She shuffled off very quickly the moment he looked at her, and she hid in one of the side rooms as he gave a quiet chuckle. It wasn't until she peeked her head out that he spoke.

"You are very quick to run off, liddle Kul Tiran. Do I frighten you?"

".. .... .... a little bit, Your Majesty."

Rastakhan laughed! "I am sure it cannot be helped. Calm yourself, I will not harm you. Are you going to sleep in dere?"

She nodded. There was a stone bench in there with a thick fur draped over it-- it would suffice for the foreseeable future. The king made a soft noise, a mix of amusement and acknowledgment, and waited for her to hide away again before he resumed undressing. The hunter settled herself on that stone bench-- though this time, her back was against the wall. A lesson learned already. It wasn't until she thought Rastakhan was asleep that she drifted off into slumber, marked by a deep, tired sigh.


	2. Chapter 2

Morning came and went, and the hunter had gone undisturbed while Rastakhan awakened and went about his day. At some point, however, someone had draped an additional fur over her body and left a little bowl of cut-up fruit and a few extra robes on the ground. Probably the guard, insulted by her making such a mess by biting into that mango like a gremlin. She seemed startled by both-- though the weight of the extra fur was nice, and caused her to doze a few times before she finally slid off the bench to eat the food left for her. Just taking things slow and quiet.

Once that was done, she silently made her way across the chambers to the bathroom to clean herself up a bit and change into one of the other robes. The one she'd slept in was carefully cleaned in the hot water of the tub, then left to dry in a patch of sunlight that crept in through what she'd thought was just carvings in the stone. Secret windows. Definitely nothing large enough for anyone to get through-- it was made up of many smaller holes, to provide light and ventilation.

The rest of her day was spent either in the main bedroom area or off in the side room she'd slept in, occasionally curled over a book she'd pulled down from a bookcase. As suspected, none were in a language she could read. Very few had pictures. But she did see a few better drawings of the loa, and did her best to try to recognize key elements of their appearances in case she ever saw one again.

Eventually, she could hear the clinks of armor coming down the hallway, and she quickly zoomed across the room to put the books back before tucking herself back on her claimed bench. The door opened, and she could hear the king laughing about something with the guards before the door shut.

Rastakhan looked around the room for a moment before stepping over to peek into the other one, spotting her on the bench before he walked over to crouch near her. He reached out with a gentle hand and ruffled her hair. "Did you sleep all day, hmm?"

"N.. no, I.. cleaned myself, and.. tried to read.." she meekly admitted, worried that touching his property without direct permission would be an offense. But he didn't mind it, it seemed.

"I see. Mebbeh I should check de shelves and find someting in Common for you.. it has been a while since I have touched many of dose books." He wasn't even really aware of how old some of those books were. Some probably were as old as him, no doubt. He rubbed his thumb over her cheek for a few moments before he pulled his hand away. The gesture left her confused and a bit scared, and she looked up at him uneasily before scooting back just a tad on the bench. His expression changed very subtly, though she couldn't exactly place what _emotion_ was there before he slowly stood up and went back into the other room. "Dinner is soon. Get yourself ready, mm?"

"Yes, Your Majesty," she replied quietly, waiting for him to be gone before she got up off the bench. What was that about??? She touched her cheek where his thumb had been, her face warm.

. . .

This time when they reached the dining hall, Rastakhan went and sat at the head of a massive, carved-stone table. There were seats all around it, some already taken-- surely he was the type of mon that occasionally liked to socialize as he ate, and it was a fairly good way to keep in touch with all of his guards and other high-ranking individuals. The hunter trailed along behind him up until she realized where he was headed, at which point she stumbled back a little -- right into the guard behind her -- and looked up, unsure. There were quite a few other Zandalari in here, and some of them had already taken notice of her and were watching her carefully.

The guard smiled a little, trying to nudge the spooked woman along with a gentle hand against the back of her shoulder. "Hey, it is okay. Keep goin'."

"I.. I shouldn't sit at the table." _Especially_ not next to the king. That was at least a dozen kinds of wrong and probably two dozen reasons for someone in the room to try to kill her. "It's not my place to. I don't.. I don't want to be in here.." she whined. 

The gazes of the other Zandalari were burning into her more and more by the minute. Rastakhan turned his head to watch her for a quiet moment before making eye contact with the guard trying to comfort her-- then motioned with a little tilt of his chin. _Take her back,_ he mouthed, and the guard nodded before leading her back down the hall.

The trip back was mostly silent until they reached the doors, and the guards briefly spoke in Zandali before the one at the door stepped aside. Both her and the guard escorting her entered, and she quickly made her way back to her hiding place in the side room. Naturally, he followed, pausing when he saw that she'd sat down.

"What was dat about? You don't want to sit with de king? Ya gonna hurt his feelings," he joked, but her immediate wide-eyed reaction told him that maybe joking about hurting the king in any way wasn't a good idea.

"I j.. I just don't.. belong in there, at the table. I'm.. I'm just a vermin, or something, or.. _fuck,_ I don't know. But I shouldn't eat with him like that." She rubbed at her arm, anxious.

" _Hey,_ you watch ya language! But.. you are not some vermin. Trus' me. If he didn't want you eating with him, he would have left ya here to begin with." Slowly, he approached and sat down beside her. "He likes ya. ... At least I tink he does."

She didn't respond, and he fell silent, for a time. Just sitting there with her, as she rubbed at her arm. She had also started to occasionally dig her fingernails into her skin-- when he noticed, he gently reached to take her hand to stop her and rubbed his thumb over her fingers. A silent request to Not Do That. ".. Ya got a name, yea? Ya be wantin' to share it?"

"... ... Ashe."

"Ashe. Dat is a preddy name. ... ... My name is Za'kal." 

"Za'kal.." she murmured, repeating it for the sake of remembering it. "... thank you, Za'kal. .. You've been.. extremely merciful to me, since we met.. why?"

Za'kal blinked, then glanced aside. ".. I used to have a raptah, too. Liddle white ting with de biggest red eyes you have ever seen. Was the runt of de clutch. Had her for a long time, and always took good care of her, but. I tink dere was someting wrong with her on de inside. Had trouble eating, suddenly, and.. I tried real hard to keep her going, and even asked Gonk to help.. but he said it was her time. So I.. know what it is like, to lose your companion."

The hunter frowned deeply, slowly readjusting her hand to give one of his fingers a squeeze. ".. I'm sorry."

The troll laughed a little, shaking his head with a sad smile. "It is alright. Death is normal. It is why what you do before den be important, and I know I gave her de best life she could have had." He gave her hand a squeeze back, to reassure he was fine, then let her hand go. "... Are you sure you do not wish to eat someting?"

".. never said I wasn't hungry, I just.. don't.. wanna be in there. Everyone stares at me."

"Well, 'course dey gonna stare. But nobody will touch you. Rastakhan would be de first one to defend ya, I bet. And nobody is going to try ta argue with him."

"Maybe, but.. ... I just.. I don't _understand._ Why would he want me around? Why would he want to risk getting badmouthed for keeping someone like me in his _personal chambers?_ "

"Like I said.. he likes ya. What dat entails is not my business, but. I tink he just wants de company. Company dat does not have ulterior motives."

".. Company that won't try to kill him?"

"Mhm. Or try ta sleep their way to de top."

".......... Look, even if I _had_ that kind of plan, I don't think I _could_."

A beat passed, then Za'kal lost his composure completely, cackling. "Hah!!! I tink you might be right.. no offense. You are preddy liddle." He wiped a tear from his eye. "Loa above. We shouldn't talk about dat sorta ting,. anyway, did you want me to bring food to ya?"

His reaction had embarrassed her, just a little. So loud!!! Her cheeks had turned pink. "... y-yes, please."

Za'kal grinned at her, giving her a pat on the shoulder before he stood and started his way out. "Be back soon. I'll try ta get ya someting good."

Ashe waved at him as he left, then dropped her hand into her lap again once the door had shut. Rastakhan just.. wanted someone around. It probably hadn't been his original intentions for her-- she figured her mentioning that it was 'spy or starve' had something to do with it. As for what he'd done earlier... well, maybe she could muster up the nerve to ask him.

The door reopening startled her out of her thoughts, and Za'kal returned to the side room with a bowl in each hand, one of which that he gladly handed over to her. Inside was grilled fish and steak, mixed in with various herbs and vegetables.. mostly potato, but that was fine with her. "Dis gonna fill ya belly enough?"

"Y-Yes! Thank you.." Almost immediately she began digging into it, as Za'kal sat down next to her again to eat his own bowl. He'd needed food too, after all.

"Ya be welcome." _Munch munch, swallow._ ".. I told de king dat you were just feeling shy. He seemed ta understand."

She paused, letting her fork drop back into the bowl for a moment. ".. hope I didn't actually hurt his feelings."

"Nahhhh. He is fine. But ya can apologize if ya wanna be sure."

"Think I will.." she murmured, before she resumed eating.

They both had been just about finished with their meals when they heard the door open and close again, and Rastakhan peeked at them both from the doorway. Za'kal nearly choked and tried to stumble up to salute, but the king just raised a hand calmly. No need.

"Apologies for eating in ya chambers, Your Majesty. Just wanted ta be sure she ate."

"It is fine, Za'kal. Tank you for keeping an eye on her."

Za'kal nodded, still standing up anyway despite not needing to. "It is late, so I should be headin' out anyway.. Ra'tika will have my head if I don't bring back de bowls." He gently collected Ashe's bowl, giving her a smile before he disappeared out of the room. 

Rastakhan chuckled and watched him go, but quieted as he turned back towards Ashe. She stared up at him in silence for a moment before averting her gaze.

".. s-sorry, Your Majesty."

"For what?"

"I was too scared to e-eat with you."

"Ah.. it is fine, it is fine. I put you in a difficult situation without intending to." Slowly, he wandered closer and sat beside her, his hand finding her hair and ruffling it very carefully. Because Loa forbid this human ever have a good hair day. "Next time I will just have Za'kal bring you a meal, like today."

"Mm.. okay."

The ruffling actually made her smile a little, and she tilted her head up to look at him between his fingers. He looked down at her and visibly relaxed somewhat-- he did think that perhaps he'd assumed too much, but the smile eased his worries. The ruffling turned into a sort of petting, slow and gentle down the back of her head, lasting for a minute or so before he withdrew his hand and stood back up. It was in fact pretty late, and he had a schedule to keep to. "Goodnight, liddle Ashe."

She perked in light alarm-- ah. Za'kal must have told him her name. Sneaky fucker. ".. Goodnight, Your Majesty."

. . .

The days continued on like that for a time. She'd wake up alone, but Rastakhan would come see her before dinner and Za'kal would bring her a meal, and then she'd get to talk to the king before he went to sleep. She didn't envy his schedule in the slightest.. being king was a tiring matter, no doubt. But having her around did seem to lighten him, emotionally, at least according to Za'kal. 

Her back was starting to hurt from sleeping on the stone bench all the time, though.. and, naturally, Za'kal snitched to the king about it one night. When Rastakhan had returned that evening, he looked into her "room" with light concern. ".. Why did you not tell me dat you were hurting?"

".. Did Za'kal gossip? Again?"

"Answer de question."

"... ... I didn't think it was worth bothering you with."

Rastakhan scowled a little, though not _at_ her. ".. You can always tell me anyting. You live here, you deserve to be comfortable."

"I-It's fine, Your Majesty."

"No, it is not. You are to use my bed when I am not here, so your back can recover."

 _"Y-Your Majesty--"_ she stammered, holding her hands up a little--

"Ah-ah. No arguing with me. You know dis. And don't tink you can just get away with disobeying me because I will not be here." _That_ had her look up at him in light fear. He hated that he'd brought that reaction out of her, and sighed. "... I do not want ya to be in pain. That is all."

Ashe nodded, and he seemed to accept that as an appropriate response. Though, that night she didn't really sleep at all, a little too spooked by the conversation and anxious about the idea in general. Unfortunately, she didn't have a choice in the matter. In the morning when she'd finally been able to doze off, Rastakhan entered her room-- semi-covered, thankfully, just missing his upper armor and headdress. With the utmost care, he picked her up.

"Wwhh..?" she murmured, barely conscious enough to realize she was being lifted-- but when she realized she was at _eye level_ with him, she struggled lightly. "A-ah--"

"Shhh. Here." He set her down in his bed, and she sank into it nearly immediately, lost in the softness. And also just unable to move in general, out of shock. "Rest well while I am gone."

As much as she wanted to protest, the loud pops of her spine spoke for her. Big comfy. Embarrassed, she hid her face under an arm-- then _both_ arms, when she realized Rastakhan wasn't even fully dressed yet. "Yyyyes, Y-Your Majesty."

By the time he was done getting ready and looked over to say he was leaving, she was passed out. She didn't wake up until he returned that evening with Za'kal. The guard remained at the door, watching as Rastakhan sat on the edge nearest her and gently stroked down her back with a broad hand, speaking softly. "Wake up, liddle hunter. You need to eat dinner."

".. mmnn..?" She opened her eyes slowly, completely out of it. The wonders of a soft bed after days of sleeping on a hard surface. "... .. not hungry.." was all she'd managed to say before she dozed off again.

Rastakhan just chuckled, and looked to Za'kal. ".. I will bring her back someting myself after I am done eating. Go spend time with de others for once. Ra'tika misses sassing you," he teased, as he stood up to rejoin him at the door.

"Of course she does! She bullies me all de time.." he muttered, before the door closed behind the two trolls, and Ashe was left to nap in silence.

Rastakhan returned around the usual time, alone, with a small bowl in hand. Just fruit-- something that wouldn't go bad too quickly if left unattended, if she ended up not eating all of it. He removed his headdress and set it on its stand before he settled on the bed, reaching out with his free hand to pet at her again. "Did you fall asleep again..? Poor liddle ting. I brought ya someting to eat.." he said with a soft tone, smiling when she opened her eyes and looked up at him. The bowl was set within her grasp, and she slowly reached out to take a little slice of fruit and stuck it in her mouth. Slow chewing.

"... thank you, Your Majesty."

Rastakhan chuckled, and continued to pet her as she ate. Thankfully, she didn't doze again mid-eating, and managed to finish all of the fruit after a little while. A realization hit-- and she sat up abruptly, embarrassed. "I-I-- I'm keeping you from going to sleep, I'm sorry--" she stammered, only for the king to give a soft laugh.

"It be fine. I have no problem with sharing de bed."

"Y-you sleep in the _nude,_ sir."

The king just chuckled again, gently taking the bowl to set it aside before removing the armor around his chest. Ashe sputtered quietly and wriggled around on the bed before scooting as far up and away from him as she could, keeping her back turned to him completely. The desire to stay comfy was overriding her desire to not get an eyeful of the crown jewels but _by every God and Loa_ was she going to do her best on the matter. It didn't help that this was such a warm area that there was _definitely_ not a blanket currently in use on this bed. But once Rastakhan laid down, she risked a glance over her shoulder to see that he'd turned his back to her, too. She sighed in relief, and relaxed. It's fine. This was fine. The fucking sovereign king of Zandalar was laying behind her in the fucking nude _it was fine._ It wasn't fine. But it was, eventually, once she'd calmed down further and heard the troll's gentle, deep breathing behind her. It served to help her go back to sleep, despite having slept all day-- sometimes you just had to get a full day of sleep to get your body back in check, though.


	3. Chapter 3

At some point during the night, she had subconsciously shifted closer -- or maybe just kind of slid, due to the dip in the bed from his weight -- and rested her back against Rastakhan's. His body emitted a fair amount of heat, like a furnace.. which of course just made his lack of sleeping attire all the more understandable.

He was the first to awaken, taking a deep breath as he did so, immediately becoming aware of the slight pressure and warmth against his back... ah. Well.. he didn't need to get up just yet. He laid there for a few more minutes, just thinking to himself. Ashe's awakening was marked by a little shift in weight and an abrupt but quiet gasp, before she pulled herself back to the other side of the bed. Rastakhan rumbled with a soft chuckle, then got up to start his morning routine. It wasn't until after he'd finished bathing and put his armor on that she finally rolled over to face him, her cheeks still a dark pink from the embarrassment. Neither of them said a word, but Rastakhan did smile warmly at her before he left for the day. She remained there for an hour or so before managing to pull herself free of her cozy prison, just for the sake of going to the bath to soak for a while.

By the time Rastakhan returned, she was clean, dry, and wearing a different robe. And just kind of... completely sprawled out on the bed, facedown, limbs reaching out as far as they could. "I see you are taking advantage of me letting ya use de bed."

"... makes my back not hurt. Is it dinner time already?"

"Yes. Did you want Za'kal to bring you someting?"

Slowly, she lifted her head. "... a-actually, can I.. come with you, this time?"

"Are you sure..?"

".. maybe."

Rastakhan smiled very slightly and walked over to pick her up off the bed.. and just held her, for a moment, before setting her down on her feet. She followed after him once he started to walk out, and Za'kal gave her a look of surprise when she emerged from the room with the king.

"Oh? You coming to dinner, mon?"

".. Yeah."

"If ya start feeling uneasy, just let ol' Za'kal know, okay? I'll bring ya back."

She nodded, and hurried her pace just a little for the sake of keeping up with Rastakhan's longer stride.

Upon entering the dining hall, her presence naturally turned a few heads.. and yet, the atmosphere was decidedly less hostile this time around. Still a bit tense, but it didn't feel.. _dangerous._ Ra'tika perked up from the kitchen and waved as she strode over. Her demeanor had changed considerably.. maybe Za'kal had spoken to her. 

"Eyyy, dere she is. Here I was tinkin' you didn't like us."

"... t-that's what I thought about you."

"Mmmm.. I be capable of changing my tune."

Rastakhan went to settle at his spot at the table as the two women spoke. Za'kal went with him, and gently assured the few worried Zandalari that she was fine, and harmless. The table was laid out with various meats and fruits, and in the middle of it was a modest-sized cake. Definitely enough for everyone to have a slice, including her. There were also several bottles of alcohol arranged neatly next to it.

"You picked a good day to join us. It be Va'ki's birthday, an' I made som' treats." She motioned to one (1) single troll sitting near Rastakhan, with very tiny party hats stuck on either one of his tusks. They clashed hilariously with his stern expression. Upon closer inspection, Ashe recognized him-- he was the other guard that had arrested her. "Go sit yaself down, have som' fun wid us."

Ashe nodded and shyly went back to Rastakhan and Za'kal, the latter of whom had gotten her a chair with a non-subtle amount of cushioning so she could actually reach the damn table, set between himself and the king. He lifted her up and set her down with a grin.

"Dat good enough? I took all de pillows I could find on short notice."

"Y-Yeah, it's fine.. thank you, Za'kal."

Despite the initial awkwardness, the hunter had managed to feel slightly less like an outsider as dinner progressed. Even with Rastakhan at the table, things didn't feel formal in the slightest. Everyone was.. casual. Friendly. Joking, jeering. The alcohol involved surely helped in that regard, but Ashe tried her best to stay away from it.. the key word being tried. 

What she'd made the mistake of doing was saying that she could probably drink Za'kal under the table when the other boasted about how much he'd already had to drink.

Za'kal raised a bottle at her almost immediately, slamming his free hand on the table with a _plap._ Not exactly the same effect as a wood table, but the emotion got across fine. "Hah! You tink ya can outdrink a Rastari? As a liddle human? I bet ya can't even drink half'a dis boddle."

"I'm from Kul Tiras, Za'kal. Alcoholism is basically a pastime for half the population," she said, narrowing her eyes at him-- albeit playfully. Va'ki snickered, already a few drinks deep himself.

"She don' even got anyting t'bet, Za'kal."

"Den she can do someting I tell her t'do."

".. Be dat _really_ appropriate--"

_"NOT LIKE DAT!"_

Half the table erupted into snickers, and even Rastakhan cracked a smile at the exchange. Ashe huffed and reached to snatch the bottle out of Za'kal's hand, uncorking it with little effort before just starting to chug the whole damn thing while keeping eye contact with the surprised guard. She (gently) slammed the bottle back on the table with a loud clink-- she'd emptied it. 

**" _Fuck_ you."**

The table fell silent. Za'kal's mouth hung open. . . . And then Ra'tika cheered, throwing her fist in the air, and that started a chain reaction of cheering and shouting that had the hunter grinning and covering her face with one hand in light embarrassment. Za'kal snapped out of his surprised state and grabbed her gently around the neck with one arm, pulling her over towards him so he could noogie her.

"I tol'ya to watch ya language!! Ya rude liddle imp! Cussin' in front'a de king!"

"He's probably heard worse!!!" she retorted, as she struggled to escape his hold. Unfortunately, he was still far stronger than her. But he let go after a moment and just left her in his lap, and she sat on one leg and promptly stole the last bite of food off of his plate. Much to Ra'tika's enjoyment, especially when the guard realized what she'd done far too late and promptly (and carefully) shoved her off his leg.

"Ya gremlin!!!!" he shouted, as she pulled her chair away from his before climbing back up to sit in it.

"Ya asked for dat, I tink. Ya underestimated her," Ra'tika teased, reaching over to plop another chunk of meat on his plate. Za'kal murmured a thank you, pouting as he started on it.

Proud, Ashe sat perched on her tower of pillows.. except slowly, she was leaning to one side without realizing it. Va'ki was first to notice, and his gaze alerted Rastakhan-- who quickly reached over to catch her in one arm the moment she started to fall. Za'kal looked up from his plate, startled, before the memory hit him--

".. ah. Not pureblooded Kul Tiran. I just remembered she told me dat."

"She drank one of de strongest bottles, too.." Ra'tika commented, a little concerned. For a troll it was no issue, but for someone of her size...

Rastakhan slowly set her down on her feet, which.. quickly turned into lowering her onto her rear on the floor. Which then turned into both he and Za'kal staring at her as she slid into a horizontal position and began to giggle unevenly. 

Za'kal gave an uneasy smile. "... She is fine. Maybe."

"If she loses her dinna, you be cleanin' it up, Za'kal," Ra'tika warned, as she came around the table to kneel down next to the human. "Ya good down dere? Ya havin' a good time?" 

Ashe just gave a thumbs-up before her hand dropped down again. 

The chef sighed. ".. Yeh, she be fine. We jus' leave her dere for a bit, see what happens."

There was a soft murmuring of agreement before the little party resumed, and Ashe was left on the ground with one _(1)_ pillow gently wedged under her head and was occasionally glanced at by either Rastakhan or Za'kal to make sure she was still alive. Thankfully, she just slept. But once it got late enough and plates had been taken back to the kitchen, Va'ki and Za'kal wandered off together, and Rastakhan moved to pick up the drunken little hunter and held her like one would a baby. She blinked a few times and rolled her head briefly before managing to Look at him.. and then bonked her head against his armor as her head flopped against his shoulder.

"Hhhhhi, Your Majeshty.."

"Hello dere.~ Are you going to vomit on me if I take you back to de room?" he questioned in a light tone, smiling in amusement.. he was a bit out of sorts from the few drinks he'd had, too. The question was.. partially serious. But when she shook her head side to side slowly, he started his way back to his chambers at a slow pace, with her in his arms.

Upon returning to the safety and privacy of the bedroom, he sat on the edge of the bed and held her in his lap. She seemed mostly unaware of what was going on, despite her prior agreeing to come back here, and held onto one of his arms for the sake of keeping herself grounded somewhere. Not holding onto something just made her feel like she was floating. Rastakhan stroked at her side with his knuckle, but didn't stray from that, pausing when she looked up at him with a confused frown.

"... m'I in trouble..?"

"Hah, of course not. You were defending de honor of your people. You just perhaps should have considered dat troll wine is far stronger than human wine.."

"Mmmm..... s'tashtier, too.." she murmured, leaning her head against him before letting out a whine. Her head was still swimming, and having her eyes open was a dizzying affair. Rastakhan shifted to lay her facing away from him on her side of the bed, with one of his pillows to rest her head on. Once sure she was going to stay there and not roll over, he went and got himself ready for bed.

Ashe had honestly passed out shortly after he set her down. But at some point, the desire for **warmth** overtook her sleepy, drunken mind, and she rolled over to wedge herself against Rastakhan's back. The shifting was enough to wake him up -- kings had to be light sleepers -- and he glanced back at her with a little hum. Carefully, he rolled himself over and let her cuddle up against his chest, draping an arm over her form and his chin tucked down against her head. Hopefully she didn't kick him when she sobered up.. _if_ she was sober by morning, anyway.


	4. Chapter 4

Thankfully, she had in fact sobered by the time she awakened at too-fucking-early in the morning, the process sped along considerably when she realized the predicament she had found herself in. Her breathing became short and confused, and she looked up with wide, confused eyes. She remembered drinking. She remembered falling, she remembered.. laying on the floor. She did  _ not _ remember coming back here, or anything that may or may not had happened between then and now. Her stirring had awakened Rastakhan in turn, and he rumbled sleepily before glancing down-- oh. Very slowly, he lifted his arm, ceasing to trap her against himself.

".. I think we both drank a bit more than we intended. Hmhmh.."

"... please tell me you're wearing some kind of pants."

"What do you think de answer to dat question is."

She may have then set a speed record in rolling over to the other side of the bed. Rastakhan blinked, then laughed. "In my defense, I am sure it was you dat cuddled up to me first." When all he got was an embarrassed, anxious huff in return, he slowly reached over and set his hand on her side. She jolted initially, then went still as he rubbed at her side and back. ".. Nothing happened. I promise. I would not betray your trust like dat." He could only imagine how bad things looked from her end.

"... I d-don't think I would have feeling in my legs if something did happen," she joked, managing a tiny glance back at him. Rastakhan took a moment to register the joke, then gave another soft, rumbling chuckle.

"Maybe.~"

_ "W-We aren't testing that."  _

Rastakhan could tell she didn't want to continue that particular line of conversation, so he fell silent in favor of just rubbing her side further. It was close to when he normally woke up, but he could spend a little time here, for once. As Ashe relaxed further from the petting, he decided to test something-- he gently curled his hand around her and started to pull her closer. She gave a soft, confused sound at first, but otherwise didn't resist, staying still until she felt her back against his chest. His arm resumed draping over her as it had before, though his hand laid flat against the bed as opposed to holding onto her. She glanced up at him, and he just rested his chin on her head again, breathing deeply and quietly.

They remained like this until Rastakhan couldn't hold off his duties any longer, and he gave her a squeeze before getting out of bed. She remained where he left her, head buzzing with the remnants of what might have been a hangover and whatever feelings  _ that _ had just given her. Needed time to process. Rastakhan returned after a while, dressed, and left, but not before giving her a little pat-pat and a bowl of fruit that a very hungover Za'kal had brought on his way to escort him to the throne.

She spent the rest of the day drifting between sleeping and thinking.

Dinner came and went -- she'd gone with him, again, but  _ definitely _ didn't drink this time -- and come bedtime, she had willingly cuddled up against Rastakhan like they had been earlier in the day. The whole decision-making process had been entirely silent, started just by him placing his hand on her side, with her consenting to it by scooting towards him slightly. Though this time, she opted to slowly reach out and take his hand instead of just letting it lay in front of her, pulling it in to hug it to herself. It was calloused and rough, but.. big, and warm. Pleasant to hold. 

Sleep came quickly for both of them, but again she couldn't help but wake up earlier than usual. It wasn't a matter of her not being  _ able _ to sleep-- she just.. felt rested enough. The king was in a similar state, already awake by the time she started showing signs of consciousness. He gave her a tiny squeeze, and a growly sort of rumble in greeting. The sound made her shiver a little, and he chuckled, rubbing the tip of a finger under her chin.

"Did you sleep good, liddle Ashe?"

".. y-yes, Your Majesty."

"No need to be so formal in here. 'Rastakhan' is just fine," he mused, tilting his head a little so he could look at her. As much as he could, anyway. Tusks.

Being given the privilege to not have to call him by his title had her face turning a light pink, even more so when she glanced up and caught his gaze. ".. y.. yes, Rastakhan."

He smiled warmly, shifting his hand up to rub the side of a finger against her cheek. She leaned into the touch a small amount, giving his hand a squeeze with both of hers before she released it in favor of slowly wriggling and turning around so she could face him, her head resting just below his tusks. He raised his arm to permit it, then flattened his hand against her back once she had settled. Slow, soft rubs.

"You are getting more and more comf'table with me, eh?" he teased, grinning some. She nodded and looked away from his face, still not entirely sure of her emotions for the time being. Again, a little laugh rumbled in his throat. "If dat ever changes, let me know."

Ashe gave a soft noise in acknowledgment, doing her best to not look back up at his face-- mostly because she knew he was looking at her, and the eye contact would just fluster her more. He seemed to know this, too-- which was why he refused to look away. Making her blush was a game, now.  _ Cute liddle ting. _ But he wouldn't try to cross any boundaries at the moment, perfectly content with just existing here with his favorite little defector.

Eventually the sun began to rise, speckles of light filtering in through the secret windows, and it was time for him to get up. He gave her a squeeze before rolling out of bed, and she shut her eyes nearly immediately to avoid getting an eyeful of anything. Her persistence in doing so tickled him, a bit. But maybe being around for over 200 years just made him not particularly care about nudity. Off he went to the bath to get himself washed.

The hunter kept her eyes closed until she heard the familiar clinking of him putting his armor on, peeking them open slowly just to be sure he had the lower part on before she sat up with a yawn. Rastakhan smiled down at her, reaching over to ruffle her hair before he finished getting his armor fastened in place. Gold was heavy-- had to be tight and secure. 

His hand paused as he went to grab his headdress, and he turned his gaze back towards her. She just looked back up at him with an owlish sort of gaze, blinking slowly. He moved to brace a knee against the stone part of the bed and leaned in towards her, and she didn't quite know how to react-- except to just freeze up, when he placed a tiny kiss against her forehead. Her eyes were wide as can be and her face pinker than it'd ever been by the time he pulled away, and he just laughed quietly to himself before getting his headdress settled and making his way out.

It'd be a good minute before Ashe wrangled her senses back together enough to process what had just happened, and.. flopped over on the bed, covering her face. Oh boy. Oh boy oh boy oh god oh  _ fuck. _

. . .

When Rastakhan returned for the evening.. Ashe was nowhere to be seen. Za'kal glanced around from behind him, gently shutting the door.

"... Eh? Where did she go?"

"Did she leave de room?"

"She knows bettah. Na'goto wouldn't let her pass. Plus he woulda told us someting."

Rastakhan stepped further into the room, and Za'kal could see that the king was visibly worried. He kept turning his head, looking all over for his little human friend, and the guard joined in, checking the side room first. Empty. Bathroom? Empty. Rastakhan had been about to call more guards to look for her around the palace when he spotted movement on the bed, under his pillows. Slowly he approached and lifted one-- and there she was, curled up into a shy little ball but gazing right up at him. He heaved a sigh of relief, and Za'kal wandered over to look.

"Oh, dere she is. Ya burrowed in dere real good, eh?" he commented with a grin, but her lack of a response had him lightly worried.

Rastakhan slowly set the pillow down to the side and stroked the top of her head with a single knuckle. ".. She is just shy today. It is fine. Tell de othas I will be having de night to myself, and not to worry."

"Yes, Ya Majesty. I'll bring ya both some food. Mebbe Ra'tika still got sometin' sweet in de kitchen, I'll check."

"It is appreciated, Za'kal."

Rastakhan waited until the guard had left the room before he slowly sat down on the bed, concern still plain as day on his face. She didn't move from her nest of pillows, just watching him with a wary expression. 

".. Did I upset you?"

She shook her head.

"Are you okay?"

A shrug.

"Are you going to elaborate, or do you want to wait til after Za'kal brings de food?"

A pause, then a nod. She wanted to wait. Rastakhan sighed softly and just respectfully pet down her head and back with his finger until the guard returned, and he thanked him for the tray of food and had him set it down on the other side of the bed. Only after he left again did Ashe crawl out of her hiding place, sitting up carefully while still being pet.

"... ... why'd you kiss my head?"

Rastakhan paused his petting, and withdrew his hand. "To show I appreciate you. Be it too much?" He'd thought it was fine.. she hadn't shoved at him, or caused a fuss. Maybe he just didn't understand humans as well as he thought.

".. n.. no, I just. Don't understand why," she admitted, curling in on herself a little more in her seated position. "... ... m'just a human."

The troll couldn't help but laugh a little, setting his hand against her back. "So? You are my friend, Ashe. And.. you have been keeping my spirits up, lately. There is a lot going on out dere. Serious tings. It... has been nice, to have ya here to come back to after de day is done with. If you do not want me to act like dat towards you, it is understandable." Even if it did hurt, a little bit. He wasn't going to force it-- he was a king, not a brute.

She shook her head repeatedly, scooting closer to lean on him and tuck her face into his side. Her feelings hadn't been completely sorted out yet, but she was working on it. He took this as a good sign, though, and gently held her to his side with the arm he'd been using to pet her.

They remained like this for a time before she gave a short, soft sigh, like she'd decided on something-- and then she  _ climbed _ up his side using his armor to support herself. Startled, he just let her do it; there was no obvious malicious intent at play, and it was just so out of nowhere that he didn't know what to expect.. until he saw her face up near his. She stared at him very intently for a short moment, clinging to his shoulder pad, before leaning in to press a little kiss to his cheek! Then she dropped down onto the bed and retreated into her pillow-burrow.

Rastakhan just sat there, blinking in surprise, before he looked over to where she'd disappeared. A smile grew, and he chuckled warmly as he got up to remove his headdress and set it aside. Upper armor, too. The food tray was gently relocated to a table, then he climbed back onto the bed. Laying on his belly, he started to gently poke his way through the mass of pillows with his tusks until he found her back in that same position and with the same expression of wide-eyed apprehension.

Careful hands pulled her closer, and she sat up as she rolled onto her back, giving an anxious squeak as his face neared hers. Trapped in tusk prison. No escape. And yet, he gave pause, as if giving her time to decline this obvious advance. When she didn't, he leaned in to give her a soft, chaste little smooch. Although brief, it felt more like hours, and once he pulled away he couldn't help but chuckle at how red her face had become. But that was as far as he was willing to push at the moment, and simply laid there partially hovering over her while she squirmed and huffed.

"Are you going to be okay?~"

_ Nodnodnodnodnod. _

"You want to eat?"

...  _ Nodnodnod. _

Rastakhan slowly slid back and sat up, then went to fetch the food tray and bring it back to set between them. Za'kal had gotten pretty much a couple of everything from tonight's spread-- grilled paleo steak, some kind of salad, two small bowls of veggie soup.. and a single slice of leftover cake.

They ate mostly in silence, both of them eyeing that slice of cake-- but when Ashe tried to go for it after she was done with her part of the meal, Rastakhan promptly stole part of it with his fork. She pouted at him, only to blink in mild confusion when he held the forkful out to her.. then slowly, she leaned her head forward to take it into her mouth. The act of being gently fed like that, of all things, had flustered her and brought that deep pink tint back to her cheeks. The gesture was repeated until the slice was almost entirely gone-- the king kept the last bite for himself, smiling down at her. 

"Feel bettah?"

".. Yes."

"Good." 

Rastakhan slid off the bed to set the tray back on the table. When he came back he reached over to gently turn her away so he could undress, then got back in his usual spot. She was quick to cuddle up to him this time, even going so far as to lay her head as close to his as comfortably possible so she could give him a nuzzle of appreciation. He rumbled out another laugh, pleased at how things had progressed. With full stomachs and contented souls, they both fell asleep fairly quickly.

. . .

The next morning was, again, an earlier start than usual. But Rastakhan had little issue with it as long as she didn't either.. they did go to sleep a little earlier than normal, anyway. The cuddling may have also been a factor. He carefully maneuvered his tusk beneath her head so he could press his lips to her forehead again, just resting there for a moment with a tiny kiss before she stirred and looked up at him. Ah.. tusk prison again. The hunter smiled. ".. Mm... mornin'.."

"Good morning," Rastakhan replied, tone soft. He watched her gaze shift from his face to the tusk not underneath her, and her hand twitched. ".. Ya can touch dem. It be okay, it don't hurt."

Slowly, she brought her hand up and ran a fingertip along the side, only going about halfway towards his mouth before withdrawing her hand again. Very strange sensation, to be touching what was basically exposed bone. The king chuckled, pressing another kiss to her forehead before he slowly moved away to sit up. He'd expected her to turn away, but.. for once, she didn't. But with no comment on her part -- even when he  _ definitely _ saw her gaze flicker away from his face for half a second -- he wandered off to get himself washed. Of course, any comments she had were very tightly locked in her head and filed under "things you don't say to a 200-plus-year-old monarch at what felt like four in the morning".

She remained there in bed for a time before she too got to her feet, hesitating before slowly making her way into the washroom. Rastakhan watched her from his reclining position the tub, amused that she'd gotten so adventurous so quickly. Though perhaps once the ball got rolling, so to speak, there wasn't much point in being shy. "Ya gonna get an eyeful if ya get any closah.~"

"S-So?" came her reply, as she came to sit down and dip her feet into the tub near him. "..... .... definitely wouldn't be able to walk," she said after an uncomfortably long moment of quiet, squinting at him. Rastakhan promptly lost it, cackling.

"You had to tink about it first, eh?" he teased, bringing his hand out of the water to give her a playful nudge. She huffed and gave his hand a light pap-- which only resulted in him gripping her hand and pulling her into the water. Her shriek cut off as she went under, but thankfully Rastakhan was kind enough to help her get back out, even as she scowled at him. A robe was not optimal swimming attire. 

"I'm gonna tell Za'kal you've been bullyin' me."

"You  _ really _ tink he will do anyting about it?"

".... he'd gossip, maybe."

Rastakhan hummed and closed his eyes, leaning his head back. He heard what he assumed was Ashe adjusting her wet robe-- only to give a startled grunt with said robe went  _ plap _ right over his head, followed by the sound of Ashe hopping back into the water. He peeled the robe off of his face and tusks and set it aside just as she swam up to settle next to him, her head just barely above the water as she sat. He gave her a little look-over.. and rumbled. He'd forgotten that she had a fairly cute shape under that oversized robe.. baggy clothing didn't do her many favors.

"Are you trying to push my buttons, liddle huntah?~ It be a bit early for dat," he murmured, already reaching down to curl his hand around her side. Soft. But he'd behave-- she hadn't outwardly attempted to engage him in anything. Just teasing her, for now.

" _ No _ , I just... wanted to be with you." She gave a huff as his hand settled around her side, a bit anxious about being touched now that he could see  _ all _ of her. But he seemed to pick up on it, giving her tummy a little squeeze of appreciation just in case before he let go in favor of finding one of his washrags. He  _ did _ need to get clean, after all, and worked on doing so without having to move her away. She watched a little, but when he started cleaning his more personal areas, she glanced away. Still just a li'l bit shy, or maybe she just wanted to give him privacy. 

Once he was done, he glanced at her before taking up a clean washrag, soaking it before he brought it to her arm to scrub at her decidedly gently. She'd liked being fed, perhaps she liked being cleaned, too..? The lean towards his ministrations was enough of a confirmation for him to continue, gently cleaning her arms and back while she sat there with him. Naturally he avoided cleaning anything that he specifically hadn't been given permission to touch, but he did also scrub at her tummy for a moment before relinquishing the rag for her to continue on her own. And, of course, he granted her the same level of privacy she'd given him, closing his eyes and tilting his head back until she was done.

Eventually he did have to get out of the tub, and he gently lifted her out with him, setting her down so he could kneel and dry her off with not a single comment otherwise-- just gentle dabs of a soft towel where she would permit him to do so, and a kind smile. She was noticeably more nervous now that he could really  _ look _ at her, but his expression didn't change in the slightest. "Ya be a real cute liddle ting. Don't have ta be so shy, mm?" He finished off the drying by wrapping the towel around her before he placed another sweet kiss to her forehead, and that was enough to bring a smile back to her face, albeit very tiny.

"Th.. thank you."

"You are welcome.~" 

Rastakhan finished drying himself off, then went to get himself dressed. Ashe trailed behind him, crawling up into the bed as the other adorned his armor. Nap time. She was out by the time he left, and he looked back with a little smile before closing the door.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> there be smut in them thar hills

Sometime during the day, she woke back up and put on a clean robe, setting the towel out to dry in that sunny patch in the bathroom before she started to poke around the main room. He'd yet to find her any books she could actually _read_ , but as luck would have it for once, she found one that'd been written and bound by human hands. This one detailed a few loa, and had a hollow spot about halfway through-- some sort of small stone fell out into her lap. 

She picked it up and turned it over in her hands.. it was about the size of a hearthstone, but not colored as such. Dark, dusty purple with swirls of pastel blue.. some of the swirls kind of looked like faces, if she squinted enough. It crackled with trace amounts of magic, though it got stronger and stronger the longer she held onto it. And yet.. it didn't feel _dangerous_. Just.. mysterious. She held it in one hand as she looked over the pages preceding the hollowed-out part of the book. Whoever had written it had atrocious handwriting for the most part, but she saw a name that repeated often enough that she figured it was the name of the loa.

"Bwon... samdi.." she murmured to herself.

The stone sparked, and the room abruptly seemed covered in a thin, hazy film. She backed up against the bed, looking around in light fear-- but when nothing appeared to actually be happening, she focused her gaze on the stone again.. until a large, skeletal finger slipped under her chin and tilted her head up. She froze, now face to face with a troll _far_ larger and _far_ more intimidating than Rastakhan.

"Well den! It been a lonnng long time since a likkle human be knockin' at ol' Bwonsamdi's door. And from de _king's_ bedroom..." He waggled a finger on his other hand at her, tilting his head down slightly as he glowered at her. "Tsk tsk tsk.. ya be spyin', eh?" Ashe remained frozen in fear, breaths short and panicked. Oh god oh fuck oh god what had she done. 

Bwonsamdi tilted his head to the side, greatly amused by her fear, before he noted what she was wearing-- those were definitely not _human_ robes. "Or.. _ooooh_. Ya must be his likkle favorite!~ He tol' me a bit about dat..~" He brought a finger up to tap at one of his tusks. "Still.. seems ya went snoopin' where ya shouldn't. Dat stone been goin' unused for decades. Preddy sure Rastakhan killed de human dat had it," he said casually, with a shrug. "Was a good likkle followa'."

The loa leaned in closer, taking in the sight of the woman's face. "Ya best not make a habit'a goin' t'ru Rastakhan's tings. Might find som'ting ya wish ya hadn't." He brought his hands up and trailed his fingertips down her jaw a few times as she trembled, leaving little crackles of magic to dance across her skin. "But I tink ya already came to dat decision yaself, mm?~"

Ashe nodded, repeatedly, not breaking eye contact with the loa. He gave a low, rumbling chuckle before he leaned back, fading with the film over the room as she was sent back into reality. She immediately scrambled to put that stone back in the book and shove it back onto the shelf, and proceeded to hide in the pillows again for the rest of the afternoon.

. . .

Rastakhan was a little surprised to find her in there a second time, when he returned-- at least this time he looked there _first_ , instead of immediately tearing the room apart. It was more her body language that concerned him-- she was stiff, avoidant. A broad hand came to pet at her back. "Did someting happen?"

Her gaze went from him, to the bed, to the bookshelf, then back to him. Confused, he glanced over at the bookshelf.. and chuckled. "Did you go poke around de books again? I told you dat it is fine."

"... picked the wrong book to look into."

"Dat could mean a lot of tings." ... Though, he wasn't sure if he had anything explicit buried in there. "What did you find?"

"I.. .. I found a rock, and then.. a L-Loa."

He didn't need to question her further on the matter.. he knew exactly what happened just from such a simple statement. " _Ah_. Ya met Bwonsamdi, eh? ... Did he do anyting to you?" He resumed petting her, slow and gentle. When she shook her head, he seemed to relax a little. "Good. He can be a liddle.. unpredictable."

"He figured out I was your.. favorite," she murmured, glancing up at him before looking down at the pillows. Rastakhan's cheeks darkened, slightly.

"... Dat is a way of putting it. I think very highly of you, you know." He reached up to remove his headdress, setting it carefully on the bed since the stand was out of reach, then leaned down to press a soft kiss to the top of her head. She managed a squeak of a giggle, but her expression remained vaguely neutral. "De way he put it was not the most... flattering, I am sure."

".. I'm not just.. some flavor of the week, right? A-Are you.. gonna get rid of me when you get bored of me?"

"No. Loa above, no.." Rastakhan slowly gathered her up into his lap, holding her tightly, though not enough to hurt her or anything. She just looked up at him for a moment before hiding her face against his chest, armor be damned. He gave her a squeeze. ".. Would you like me to eat heah in de room with you?"

".. yeah.."

He smiled a little, then called for Za'kal, who had politely been waiting outside the door. He instructed him to bring another tray of food, with Za'kal teasing him a bit about it before a stern look sent him Very Quickly on his way. He returned fairly quickly, setting the tray beside the two and apologizing profusely for the unrequested snark earlier-- Rastakhan just chuckled and waved him off.

The two enjoyed their meal in peace, with the king gladly opting to feed her bites on occasion since she'd responded so well to it before. Eventually the food was gone, and Ashe flopped over on the bed with a hand on her belly. Full. Rastakhan smiled and reached over to rub her tummy a little, careful to not put pressure on it. She rolled over onto her back and just gazed at him, with a tired little smile. 

The rubs continued for a few minutes, slowly shifting to be up-and-down instead of side-to-side, until he stopped for the sake of removing the tray from the bed and moving the headdress (and everything else) to the armor stand. Afterwards he slowly settled back in bed with her and resumed those bellyrubs, just watching her expression for the time being. Her cheeks were a bit pinker now, but that was to be expected considering his.. change in attire.

His hand gently pinched at her robe, starting to tug it up very slowly.. when she made no move to stop him, he gradually pulled it off of her and set it aside. She immediately shifted a leg in for the sake of modesty, and he chuckled.

"You let ol' Rastakhan know if someting is too much, hm?" A nod was the only answer he'd get, and that was fine with him. His hand slowly trailed up, fingers rubbing against and between her breasts with the utmost care. She was barely a palmful for him, but that was perfectly okay. He gently pinched a nipple between his two fingers, tugging on it very lightly when he got a squeak out of her. Cute. He was more than content to just fondle her for a little while and idly stroked his hardening length, as she gradually got more and more riled up; she huffed softly for him -- especially once he started toying with himself -- and occasionally pushed her chest up into his hand and pressed her legs together. Pleased, he slowly brought his hand down lower, rubbing over her belly again before he dared to dip lower than that.

She looked up at him with a mildly startled expression, and he stopped his exploring immediately, slowing in his own self-pleasure. "Is that the limit?" he asked, tone gentle and well-meaning. Another huff escaped her. "You must use your words, liddle huntah."

"... not the limit."

"Oh?..~ Do you want me to just take it slow, then?"

She nodded, again, and slowly shifted her legs apart for him when he brought his hand back near her muff. He rubbed the pad of his finger against her folds, in time with his own strokes. He definitely had no intention of going _that_ far tonight.. but if he could at least make her squeal a little, that'd be just fine in his book.~ 

She _gasped_ when he eventually brushed against her clit, hands moving to grip the bed a little. He smirked, continuing the motions for a moment before letting his finger slide down further towards her entrance. He was pleased to find out how thoroughly she'd been enjoying this, his finger getting soaked in her fluids almost immediately. Slowly, with the utmost of care, he curled his finger in to slide it inside of her. The _mewl_ she let out made him grin with a rumbling little laugh, and he immediately began to pump it in and out at a cautious speed to try to get similar noises out of her. 

And _boy_ did it work.

He had her moaning softly for him just after a minute or so, her walls squeezing around his digit as he continued the slow pace, and her gaze slowly alternating between focusing on his face and watching him stroke himself in time with the thrusts of his finger. He wished he could just _take_ her, but he knew it was going to be an ordeal that required far more preparation.. so he was fine with just doing it himself, this time.

He gradually upped the speed, keeping at it until he felt her clench tightly around his finger and heard her particularly loud, final moan of his name(!) echo through the room. ~~That was going to be fun to talk to Za'kal about, later, since he was on chamber duty tonight.~~ The soft thrusting continued until she started to come down from her high, at which point he began to slowly taper off and eventually removed his finger from her. And cleaned it with his mouth, naturally. She shyly hid her face under her arm in response to that, panting quietly.

Rastakhan then shifted to sit up on his knees, positioning himself between her legs and pulling her up onto his thighs so he could rub the tip his length against her soaked cunt. Definitely was not intent on pushing in, but _Loa_ _above_ he wanted to at least feel her against him. She just watched him, dazed, trusting him not to harm her. 

Once he'd slickened himself enough he resumed pumping his shaft with a growl, letting her slide down off his legs a little so he could use a thumb to spread her folds wide and get a good look at her.. and when he reached his own peak, he _very_ _liberally_ coated her muff with his seed, giving a rumbling, aggressive sort of sound. 

She _squeaked_ as she felt the warmth splatter over her lower half, now covering her face with both arms.. her emotions were a mix of embarrassed, flattered, and.. residually horny, honestly. She kind of wished they could have done more, but.. not yet. She'd be sore for days, if not actually injured. 

Rastakhan gave a warm, pleased chuckle. "I tink dis look works very well for you," he rumbled, patting at one of her legs as he admired his handiwork, before he gently slid a finger to her entrance to claim her _just_ a little (as a treat) by spreading her folds again to let his seed drip into her. He knew damn well he was gonna have to get up and go find something to clean her with before the bed became as messy as she was, but.. it could wait a few more minutes. Or, actually... 

He gave her leg another pat before reaching over to scoop her up into his arms bridal-style. With careful movements so as to not jostle her too much, he climbed out of bed and took her off to the bathroom so they both could soak in the tub for a little bit and get properly cleaned before heading back for some sleepytimes.

. . . .

That night, they both slept heavily, with her eagerly snuggled up against him and his arm around her waist. They also both woke up a little later as a result, mostly due to Za'kal _very_ _hesitantly_ poking his head inside just to be sure they were both still alive in there. Just doing his job, which Rastakhan both appreciated and also glared at him for until he closed the door again. 

The king pressed a smooch to Ashe's forehead and gave her a squeeze before climbing out of bed to get dressed. She gave a soft noise of dismay at the sudden loss of warmth, but laid there lazily, just watching him. The sound of muffled conversation outside his door told him that Na'goto had arrived to escort him, and he reached over to pet the hunter for a moment before heading out. Briefly, it sounded like he joined the conversation at hand -- and barked something in Zandali, probably at Za'kal -- before it got quiet again.

She was fine with just staying there until she heard the door start to open, but she couldn't scramble into the pillows fast enough for Za'kal to not get an eyeful of her. He gave a soft hum of appreciation, grinning-- but he stayed there at the door, respecting her space. "Just so you know, dese doors don't block out _all_ de sound from in there." She chucked a pillow at him, which he caught in one hand and gently tossed it back to the bed. "What! I am just warning you for de _next_ _time_ you an' de king get rowdy in heah."

"Fuck off, Za'kal!" she huffed, embarrassed beyond belief that he'd heard all that.

"What did I tell you about ya language?" he teased, giving a little glance down the hall before slipping into the room with her. She hid further in the pillows as she heard him approach, a little anxious now-- and flinched when he lifted the pillow she'd been peeking out from under. "You are so rude."

" _I-I'm_ rude?! You can't be in here with me like this!!" she hissed in reply, reaching up to try to yank the pillow back down-- but he held it out of reach.

"I _can_ be, even if Rastakhan might give me an earful latah. I just wanted ta check on ya.. you need any healing?"

"... we didn't go _that_ far, Za'kal."

"Oh?~ It sure sounded like dat."

Sheepish, she scooted backwards to try to hide her face in another pillow. "... ... m'too small for that."

Za'kal gave an understanding sort of smile and tossed the first pillow aside as he sat on the edge of the bed, turned just enough so he could see her. "Ya just need ta practice," he purred, waggling his brows-- if he had any, anyway. "I cou--" Another pillow flew at him and smacked him dead in the face. "--oof."

"I'm not gonna sleep with _you_."

"Ya hurting my feelings."

"Fuck your feelings."

"Ya swear at me again and I'm coming in dere."

"Rastakhan will skin you alive and display you in the dining hall."

"I didn't say I was gonna do anyting ot'ah dan that! Ya got a filt'y mind, liddle huntah."

"Ohhhh my god, fuck off."

True to his word, Za'kal promptly lunged into the pillows and got on top of her. Ashe shrieked as he grabbed her and pinned her wrists to the bed with one hand, above her head. " _Don't_ _test me_."

Ashe had gone from equal parts embarrassed and irritated to full-on terrified-- especially as Za'kal's gaze traveled down her form. 

"Ya preddy cute. Ya _sure_ ya don't wanna practice wid me?--" he started, before looking back up at her face-- _oh_. Oh, shit. She was.. actually scared of him. "Hey, now.. don't look at me like dat. I won't do anyting without ya saying so." Aside from stroking one of her cheeks with his other hand, at least. She flinched at the touch, giving him a more distressed look as she gazed up at him. But when he didn't do anything else, other than slowly release her wrists, she began to calm down very slightly.

"... y-you only say that because you know the king will kill you if you do."

"Hey! I got a moral code, ya know. I don't go forcin' myself on anyone, 'specially if dey are liddler than me.. dat's not fair. ... I just.. t'ought ya might be into casual tings like dat. Didn't really mean ta scare ya."

The comment brought a little blush to her cheeks. To be fair, Za'kal wasn't.. _unattractive_ , by her standards. And she did like him plenty, as a friend. But she worried for what would actually happen if Rastakhan found out. Her expression must have shifted a bit, because he then held up his hands in a defensive manner.

"I-If it just be me dat's de problem, den I undastand.."

"N-- No, you're.. you're okay. I just. Don't want to upset Rastakhan."

"Ya probably 'eard that yell earlier, yea? Dat was cuz I asked first. He got mad at me, tinkin' I might hurt ya.. but I be sure if ya were fine with it, he wouldn't get _too_ upset."

The hunter glanced aside for a moment before looking up at Za'kal again. He just blinked at her and smiled, warm but with a tinge of regret.. he felt bad for scaring her, still.

"... ... you pinning me like that was kinda hot."

He perked up. "Yeah?~" When she nodded in response, he slowly leaned over her again and trailed a knuckle down her cheek and down the middle of her chest. "I can be like dat wid ya, if dat's what ya be wantin'..~"

".. m.. maybe."

"Den we'll just see where tings take us.~" He sat back up to undo his armor -- it was a bit more _involved_ than Rastakhan's was, so it took him a minute -- but after setting it down, he crawled closer as she scooted out from under the pillows completely. Za'kal was definitely _built_ to be a guard, with broad shoulders and lots of muscle. ~~And while he was definitely not as _endowed_ as the king, he was still fairly impressive in that regard.~~ He took her wrists in his hand again and re-pinned her, scooting up between her legs so he could lean over her. His length rested on her muff, warm, and she gave a little huff of arousal before he leaned in to give her a tiny kiss.

"Ya jus' wan' me to get right to it?~ I be gentle wid ya for now, promise."

After she nodded, he grinned a little and sat back so he could reach down and start to push himself into her. It hurt a little at first, making her whimper, but soon she adjusted enough and managed to take him in his entirety. He gave an impressed hum, wiggling his hips to just be sure he was fully pressed into her.

"I nevah been wid a human before..~ I be glad ya ended up bein' me first one."

".. well.. you're technically the first troll to get this far, so.." she murmured, a little ashamed. Rastakhan probably wanted that honor, but.. there was no way he could _fit_ with her unused to how big trolls were. But that thought fled her mind pretty quickly when Za'kal began to thrust, slowly drawing himself in and out to get her used to him.

She keened softly.. as much as she hated to say it, Za'kal felt a _lot_ better compared to just Rastakhan's finger. He upped his pace gradually, going by the sound of her whines to tell if she wanted things a little harder. And she definitely did.

Though she soon started making a different sort of sound, a raspy little wheeze that came about when she would force her head too far back and expose her neck-- hesitantly, he shifted the hand from her wrists to wrap it around her throat instead. But _very_ gently, mind you-- he absolutely had no intention of harming her. She squeaked cutely for him, one of her hands grasping onto his wrist to indicate if he was holding her too tightly.. for now, it was just a gentle hold.

He was eventually just ramming himself against her hips, gripping around her throat to keep her pinned as his thrusts got faster and shallower-- until he hilted himself against her and emptied into her womb, with a few more thrusts just to finish himself completely. She climaxed at just around the same time, squeezing tightly around him as he filled her up, shivering when he let out a soft growl in response. 

Once they both had come down from their highs, he gently rubbed the back of his knuckles just below her belly, looking over her thoughtfully.. neither of them had really considered the possible consequences of that particular decision, but nobody had ever heard of a troll-human hybrid.. right?

"Dat be good enough for ya, liddle human?" he murmured, keeping himself buried in her for the time being as he leaned over to kiss her forehead.

"R.. really good.." she admitted in reply, averting her gaze. Her response brought a genuine smile to his face, and he shifted down a bit to give her an actual kiss, slow and gentle. She leaned into it for a moment before pulling back with a soft sigh. He took that as a sign to start cleaning her up, and removed himself from her and the bed so he could go get a clean rag from the washroom. She gazed at him as he left, and such a soft look surprised him when he came back.. loa above, she really was cute. Rastakhan had damn good taste. He settled back on the bed with her and began to clean her up as gently as possible -- she was still pretty sensitive -- then cleaned himself as well.

"Didn't tink ya would be de type to be inta' chokin'.~"

"... s-shut up, Za'kal."

"Don't start dat again, I got plenty energy in me ta go anudda round~"

"I'll break your tusks off if you try."

"Ouch. Ya goin' right for de tusks just like dat? Dey's very important, ya know.."

He leaned in to try to touch her with a tusk as a joke-- but didn't expect her to actually reach out and grab it. He froze in place, expression immediately dropping, focusing a sharp, dangerous gaze on her face. The wrong move would not end pretty for either of them.. but luckily, she really had no intention of doing anything more than gently pulling him up so she could give him another kiss. He relaxed a little, but only fully calmed once he had a hand on hers and (lightly) forced her to let go.

"Don't be doin' dat again. Ruinin' me good mood."

"... oh."

He brought her hand to his mouth and kissed her knuckles. "It's not nice ta be yanked around by me head like dat. Happened too many times."

"So you don't let anyone touch your tusks?"

"Not unless dey real special ta me. I like ya, but I godda be cautious, yea?"

".. I get you. I'm sorry."

She slowly pulled her hand from his grasp, purposely letting him have the chance to stop her before she rubbed the side of a digit against the tusk she'd grabbed. Affectionate, apologetic. He sighed, not minding this gesture.

"It be alright. Ya didn't know. Mebbe someday I'll let ya hold 'em if ya ride in me lap~"

_"Are you just constantly horny?"_

"Liddle bit. Ra'tika been teasin' me."

She snorted, then leaned in to place a kiss against his tusk. Mwah.

. . .

The night was  _ loud _ , to say the least, and not in the good way. Rastakhan had found out nearly immediately what had happened, especially considering Za'kal had still been inside the room when he returned, and half-dressed. There was a lot of angry Zandali being exchanged before the king swung. The punch the guard received could have killed him, had he not been such a strong troll to begin with. Ashe cowered under the pillows when Za'kal went down, afraid that he might come for her next-- but when the king saw her in such a state of alarm, he calmed himself down and slowly sat on the bed.

**"Come he'ah,"** he said sternly, sounding more like he was giving an order than a request. Trembling, she crawled out of her preferred nest and remained low, unable to look up at him. He lowered his voice some when she got closer, but still kept that too-formal tone that he used when out amongst his people, as opposed to the more casual one she was used to. "... Did he hurt you?" He reached out to place a hand on her head, tense, obviously displeased with this turn of events. 

"N-n-no.."

"Did he  _ force _ you?"

"N-no. I.. I said it was okay.."

Rastakhan exhaled slowly, and began to pet her in silence. Za'kal sat up and scooted against a far wall, bleeding from his nose and mouth. He remained quiet, too, having expected this outcome-- but it didn't change how much it hurt. Physically, anyway. He knew he'd toed a line, and was accepting of the consequences.

"... don't k-kill Za'kal.." the hunter finally whined, sounding on the brink of tears. Rastakhan's petting got slower, and more affectionate.

"I am not going to kill Za'kal. I am mad at him, but dere is no need for such a level of violence."

"Yeh, I expected dis to happen.."

**"Silence."**

Za'kal shut up immediately. Ashe finally got the courage to look up at Rastakhan, only to see that he'd been gazing down at her the entire time with an expression that was a mix of concern and reserved anger. And maybe a bit of.. sadness. It was obvious that this little fiasco hurt him, emotionally. But at the same time.. he kind of expected it, himself. They had been very friendly towards each other, especially with Za'kal taking care of her when Rastakhan couldn't.

Which was, of course, perhaps where he'd went wrong-- he'd been treating her like a  _ possession _ , hadn't he? Or a spoiled pet. Perhaps a mix of the two. Za'kal had treated her as a friend, albeit not on entirely equal terms for the sake of safety. His hand slowed as he processed this, and he frowned further, then stopped petting altogether.

"... Go wit' him to de healers. Stay wit' him, if dat is what you desire."

Ashe blinked, frowning. "Wh--"

" _ Go _ . Do not make me order you. Please."

She slowly crawled out of bed, avoiding his gaze as she meekly approached Za'kal. He stood, and rested a hand on her as he led her out of the room. Rastakhan did not watch them go, and merely sighed when the door closed.

. . .

The walk to the healers' chamber felt longer than it was. Ashe tried to keep herself together, but.. she was afraid. Was Rastakhan going to kick her out? What would that mean for her? Where would she go? How would she protect herself? Surely any protections she had on her due to being Rastakhan's  _ favorite _ were now thoroughly null and void. She hiccuped, and Za'kal immediately stopped to crouch beside her and give her an embrace.

"Hey, hey, shhh... it be okay."

"Does h-he hate me now..? What do I do, Za'kal..? I'm g-gonna die if I don't stay in that room.."

"No, no, no.. you be safe, trus' me. I'll protec' ya. I got ya."

He rubbed at her back for a moment before he slowly lifted her, letting her wrap her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist. He held her under her thighs, careful to not settle his fingers anywhere inappropriate. Once she was secure, he started walking again. They got a few odd looks as they went through the palace, but Za'kal shot a few glares to keep things nonviolent.

Once they reached the healers, he carefully set her down on a seat as two healers ran up and immediately started chastising him for getting his nose broken,  _ again _ , after such a short time-- before they spotted Ashe and took a step back in unison.

"What is  _ dat _ doing here?" one asked, visibly disgusted.

"Did she do dis to you?" the other questioned, a bit more aggressively.

"No, no, she just be he'ah to keep me company. It be alright," Za'kal insisted, raising his hands to softly clasp either of their shoulders. "De king felt fit to let her have a bit of wandering time."

Both healers huffed in irritation before fully turning their attention back to Za'kal. They led him over to a side room, and one cleaned him up while the other began healing his nose and broken teeth. He'd be lacking a few fangs for a while, but nothing that couldn't be replaced with gold later. Once he was cleared by both of them, he stepped back out of the room..

.. only to find that the hunter had disappeared. He paled, much to the brief alarm of the two other trolls. 

"Oh, no."


	6. Chapter 6

The guards quickly went into a full panic as word spread that the human had gotten loose somewhere in the palace. Some were concerned for her, while others were concerned about her-- what if this had been some kind of spy tactic all along?! Rastari buzzed about the halls, but none dared to report this incident to Rastakhan.. except for Za'kal.

He gently yet quickly knocked on the door, barely waiting for the grunt of affirmation from the king before he opened it. Rastakhan turned like he was about to yell at him again, before Za'kal's words cut him off.

"S-She ran off."

" _ What _ ?"

"I let her sit down by herself in de healing chamber while I was taken care of, and she.. she was gone when I came back out. It was only a few minutes--"

Rastakhan stood, leaving his headdress on the stand as he stormed past the startled guard and down the hall. Za'kal quickly caught up to him, distressed.

"Y-Your Majesty, we can handle dis--"

"You obviously cannot, Za'kal.  _ I _ will handle dis."

_ "She tinks you hate her." _

His words caused him to come to a dead stop, and he looked back at his guard in silence before a heavy frown overtook his features. Za'kal frowned right back. "... She tinks she gonna be killed, cos' you kicked her out."

"I did not mean for her to tink-- Rrrh!" He pounded his fist on the wall in frustration, before continuing on. "I do not hate her. I just did not wish for her to be around me until I had calmed."

Za'kal had been about to respond before Va'ki ran up, panting.

"She was spotted leavin' de palace. We tink she went back de way we brought her from. She be movin' very quickly-- might be usin' dose hunter tricks of hers."

Rastakhan nodded. "Get de ravasaurs ready, we will go get her."

Both guards ran off to do so, while Rastakhan followed at his own pace. The ravasaurs were ready and waiting by the time he reached the outer doors, and he mounted his own and took off while Va'ki and Za'kal trailed after him. But even with the speed of the ravasaurs on their side, they didn't find her on the way back to where they'd first met her. Za'kal wheezed in light distress, then looked off towards the west.

".. Mebbe Gonk can find her. He should be at de temple--"

"Let us go, then."

The trio sped off towards the Temple of the Prophet, and quickly found Gonk-- who stepped directly into their path, and they had to quickly stop to avoid running into his flank. The massive raptor gave a low, rumbling sound before stepping aside to show them what was ahead--  _ the hunter _ .

She was sitting curled up in front of a small shrine, crying quietly, while the spirit of her raptor stood over her, clicking and rumbling as it nosed at her. Bwonsamdi leaned against a nearby tree, giving a lazy little two-fingered salute to the King and his entourage. Rastakhan gave a look of confusion before he turned his attention towards the two loa. Gonk rumbled.

"The hunter arrived in terror. I do not know what transpired to cause such fear in her little heart, but as I understood, she had become part of your  _ pack _ . I am displeased. If you have come to slay her, I will not permit it," Gonk warned, staring down Za'kal in particular. Very disappointed in his follower.

"An' de Lord'a de Hunt here called me ova' ta help bring back de spirit of her likkle friend to calm her down." He clicked his tongue in mock disappointment. "Scarin' off ya soft likkle companion.. I t'ought betta' of you, Your Majesty," Bwonsamdi said, shrugging. Ultimately, he didn't really care that much, but he  _ did _ like the poor little hunter. As for bringing back the raptor's soul.. he liked having other loa owe him favors. Made things fun.

Rastakhan slowly dismounted from his ravasaur and approached, but Gonk lowered his head to stare at him. The king just stared back, the regret obvious in his eyes. After a long moment, Gonk lifted his head again to let him pass. Za'kal, however, got very rudely pushed back and growled at when he tried to follow. The guard quickly dropped to one knee out of respect for his loa, and as an apology.

The king eyed Bwonsamdi warily as he passed him, then slowed further as he approached Ashe. He cleared his throat so as to not startle her, but naturally, it startled her anyway-- and she quickly jumped away and hid behind the shrine. The raptor remained where it was, staring down the king before letting out a  _ roar _ . It was still her protector,  _ especially _ now, when it had no ability to help her the first time. 

Rastakhan's ravasaur gave a couple of soft cooing noises, briefly stepping back and forth in place-- it was getting antsy. And for good reason; the spirit of the raptor abruptly lashed out and  _ bit _ the king, chomping down on his arm. He winced with a growl of pain, but made no move to remove the offending spirit beast.. it wasn't strong enough to really take his arm clean off, though it did definitely hurt. The guards made to move towards him, but he held up his other hand to stop them.

"I know, I know.. I deserve dis much. You are such a strong liddle fightah, even in death. I see why she was so proud of you."

Slowly, he sat down on his knees, and brought his other hand up towards the raptor. It growled at him while still holding its bite, getting louder and louder as that hand neared its head.. until the king was just softly petting through the ghostly feathers, like he had when the poor thing had been dying in front of him. The growls turned into angry little chuffs, before fading completely, and it slowly released his arm. He just let himself bleed for the time being, focusing on the trembling figure behind the small stone structure.

"Ashe."

No response. He sighed.

"... I know dat I reacted in anger, towards you and Za'kal. I let my emotions get in de way of rational thought. .... But please trust me, when I say that I do not hate you. I do not have any intention of kicking you out, or.. letting you be killed. I was trying to give you a choice as to who you be wantin' to stay with.."

More silence, but she had slowly peeked her head around to look at him with reddened eyes. Rastakhan turned his gaze towards the ground, as he stopped petting the raptor.

"I am sorry."

It was a very long few minutes before Ashe eventually brought herself around the shrine again, and approached Rastakhan where he knelt. The two loa watched in silence, as the guards held their breath. Slowly, the hunter just got up into his lap and curled up, fingers wrapped around the 'ribs' of his armor. He chuckled weakly and wrapped his arms around her to keep her settled. 

"Dere you are.." he murmured, resting his head on hers. "You do not have to forgive me. I would understand."

"... talk later."

"Okay."

The spirit-raptor stepped closer, giving a questioning noise to its former tamer. She looked over at it and smiled sadly, reaching out to scritch under its chin. She couldn't really feel it, but it obviously could, clicking appreciatively and tilting its head side to side to guide these good scritchins.

"I miss you, but you can't stay here.. be good, okay..?" she said quietly, giving the raptor one last gentle pat on its snout before withdrawing her hand. Bwonsamdi languidly made his way over.

"I'll be makin' sure de likkle ting makes it back to de Other Side safe an' sound. No need for worryin'."

"Th.. thank you, Bwonsamdi."

The loa nodded, looking to the raptor for a moment before he waved his hand-- and it disappeared. He did too, a moment later. Ashe inhaled sharply and buried her face against Rastakhan's chest, shuddering as she exhaled. Keep it together. He rubbed at her back gently as he stood up, and carried her back towards Gonk and the others. The raptor loa seemed content with how things turned out, and quietly turned to go further into the temple grounds. Za'kal kept his gaze averted, even as Rastakhan stood next to him.

"... ... I owe you an apology, Za'kal."

"D-do not worry about it, Your Majesty. I was in de wrong, I should not be goin' against ya wishes like dat."

"De issue is we did not consider  _ her _ wishes."

"... Didn't we have dis same issue with Ra'tika, long ago?"

Rastakhan laughed softly. "Yes, I tink we did. But ya stole her from me, dat time. She liked you bettah."

Za'kal grinned. "I just had more time ta spend wid' her. Especially when she was in her mood."

Finally, Ashe spoke up to interrupt what was probably going to turn into a lightly raunchy conversation, as she briefly reached out to (extremely lightly) flick either trolls' tusks with a finger. "... like both of you. Don't.. wanna choose."

Za'kal just smiled weakly, while Rastakhan gently grabbed the offending hand and gave an affectionate squeeze before he spoke. "You be not needin' to choose. I tink.. Za'kal and I can come to an agreement on tings. We'll be talkin' latah."

Vaguely satisfied with this answer, Ashe cuddled in closer and seemed to doze off, at least until it was time to get back on the ravasaurs and head home. She rode with Za'kal, if only to keep the gossip to a minimum.


	7. Chapter 7

Sleep came quickly for Rastakhan that night, once everyone was settled.. he had informed the others that he'd be awakening late, and to adjust his meetings accordingly. Ashe gladly curled up with him in bed, nuzzled up under his chin. Za'kal had gotten his chance to be affectionate before that, at least, giving the hunter plenty of apologetic cuddles and kisses against her cheek. Nothing too  _ dirty _ in front of Rastakhan, of course. But it was sleepytime once he left, and the two slept until later in the morning.

After that it was business as usual, except Za'kal had been given  _ actual _ permission to spend time with her during the day.. so long as he had been stationed to watch the chambers, of course. She wasn't emotionally up to fooling around again just yet, but he was more than happy to just dote on her almost to the point of worship; he undressed her and placed soft kisses all across her skin, praising her, even murmuring little sweet things in Zandali even if he knew she wouldn't understand him. She could tell by his tone that they were only good things, and giggled every time he said something.

Eventually he relented and laid next to her, blinking in surprise when she moved to snuggle up into his side. He watched as her hand hesitantly wandered now, across his chest, fingers tracing across his golden tattoos. Tattoos weren't anything special, normally -- most cultures had them -- but Zandalari ones were just so different. The gold was just such a unique property, and not something she imagined felt too pleasant to get done. But trolls were extremely strong-willed, and the Zandalari very proud of themselves on top of that.

Next her hand brushed against the rough bits on his shoulder.. that was another oddity, to her. She'd heard jungle trolls had fur, but apparently Zandalari trolls had scales..? Of course she'd seen them on Rastakhan too, but she hadn't really  _ noticed _ them on any other troll until now. Za'kal smiled as she explored him, just relaxing as her warm hand travelled his body. 

When she seemed like she wanted to lay  _ on _ him, he softly nudged her with an arm to encourage her, helping her straddle his lap. There wasn't anything particularly dirty about the position, at least for now.. it was just easier for her to settle on him and lean forward to keep mapping out his body with her hands. Chest, stomach, sides, arms.. she played with his hands for a little bit, rubbing the pads of her fingers across his wide fingernails. So weird to only have two fingers! He held his palm flat for her when she turned his hand over, and she felt along his calluses and the creases of his hand before letting it go.

She leaned fully forward and rested atop him, nuzzling up against his neck.. only to jolt a little as she felt his length gently frame the curve of her rear. Za'kal chuckled softly, but didn't act on this apparent desire, bringing a hand up to rub her back. "Can't be helpin' it.~ Ya too cute."

The hunter just huffed softly, resting. Eventually the sensation went away, as they both dozed for a brief period.. but didn't awaken when Rastakhan eventually opened the door. He paused once he closed it, staring at the two with a raised brow and an amused smirk. "Can't leave you two alone for a single day, can I."

Za'kal jolted awake and immediately reached down to cover himself with the hand that had been on the human's back. "H-Hey, hey, we didn't do nuddin'! Just relaxin'."

"Relaxin' naked in me bed."

"Ya weren't usin' it."

"I'll be usin' it latah. Don't need ya shame gettin' all over it."

Ashe sleepily peered at Rastakhan, awakened by the banter. She was.. wholly exposed in his direction, but even with the visible blush that came about with that realization, she didn't care too much. She watched as Rastakhan approached and set his headdress on the pedestal, before he reached over to rub her back. His hand eventually trailed over her rear before a finger slid across her exposed entrance, briefly teasing her with a chuckle -- making her squeak -- before he walked off to go splash water in his face. It'd been a long day.. he didn't particularly  _ want _ to go to dinner tonight, but he did need to eat.. Maybe he could send Za'kal off to get food.

Za'kal seemed a little surprised that he'd be so open with her with him in the room, but.. maybe that was alright. They were  _ sharing _ her, after all. And Ashe's embarrassed little huffs against his throat were awfully cute.. and a little telling. "Did he get ya goin'?~" he purred, shifting his hand up to do the exact same thing the king had done. His finger was met with a notable slickness, and he just idly rubbed back and forth to spread it around her folds. "Ya like havin' us both in here, lookin' at ya?.. Dirty liddle huntah..~"

The king returned in time to hear that last part, and he couldn't help but give a low chuckle. He sat on the bed and reached over to toy with her again, alternating his rubbing with Za'kal's, just going back and forth. "Dat be a bit of a surprise..~ Ya got any other secrets t'share wit' us?" he teased, fingertip briefly pushing into her before he resumed the slow rubs. She huffed loudly, hiding her face against Za'kal.

"Tink we might have ta work 'em oudda her..~" Za'kal grinned, though he shot the king a mildly apologetic glance as his length hardened again. Not like he could help it at the moment. But, there seemed to be no concern about it. Not like Rastakhan was doing any better in that regard; he just had his armor on, still.

"Should be gettin' food first, I tink. She likes bein' fed."

"Oh? Dat's cute.. ... .. ya gonna make me go get it, aren't ya, Your Majesty."

"Yes."

"I am staging a coup as we speak."

"Do not joke like dat, it is far too soon."

Za'kal snorted, before gently rolling Ashe off of himself so he could get up and get dressed again, erection be damned. Waiting would just make it even more worth it. He disappeared out of the room and down to the dining hall to get food.

The hunter laid there, face red. Secrets told!! Awful!! She reached out to gently bap Rastakhan's knee in retaliation, and the old king laughed softly. 

"I think dis liddle arrangement will be more fun den I initially thought.~" he purred, reaching out to turn her onto her back so he could rub her stomach and sides with one broad hand. She huffed again, but didn't protest, squirming lightly when his fingers trailed down to tease her folds. "You already seem to tink so.~"

"Ssshhush.." she hissed quietly, covering her face in embarrassment. 

"Maybe we should see if Va'ki wants to play with you, too."

"Nnnooooo.." she whined, pouting. 

"You do not like Va'ki?"

"I barely even  _ talk _ to Va'ki."

"He talks about you.~ Tink he just knows you are  _ mine _ .~" The shiver that raced up her spine at the word was exactly what he wanted. "... Mostly, anyway. Hmhmhmh."

She fell quiet aside from soft huffs and squeaks as Rastakhan circled her entrance with his fingertip, but he never pushed in. Eventually Za'kal returned with food, and Rastakhan helped her sit up so she could eat with them.

Naturally, the two trolls would occasionally hold out a bite of food for her to take, smiling when she did. Eventually it just turned into them taking turns with feeding her until she finally refused something-- she had enough. The two ate what was left of the sizable tray of food. Once it was empty and set aside, the king gently pushed her once more onto her back as Za'kal took over belly-rubbing duty, grinning when he heard the soft noises she produced. 

"Ya really do like dis, huh..? Cute.."

"Just do not put too much pressure on her."

"I know, I know.."

Rub, rub, rub. He brought his hand higher to massage at her breasts, gently squishing them together with both hands before taking her nipples to pinch between his fingers. She gasped quietly, pushing her chest further into his hands. Rastakhan was content to watch for a moment before he stood from the bed to get his armor off, briefly glancing her over as he gave himself a stroke or two. Za'kal was briefly distracted, cheeks darkening before he looked away from his king.

"You have seen me before, Za'kal."

"I-It has been a while."

The hunter gave a questioning little noise before the trolls looked at her, and Rastakhan gave a rumbling laugh.

"We shared Ra'tika too. Had to, when she went into heat.. that was enjoyable.~"

"Yeh, she kinda wore us both down dat night.. how many rounds was it? Fifty? Sixty?"

"Sixty-four. And some of dose were doubles."

The casual tone of the conversation just had the poor human blushing more.. she wasn't going to be able to look Ra'tika in the eye for a while.

"I do not tink we can get away with dat dis time.~" Za'kal commented, slowly sitting closer on his knees. His cock bobbed gently as it was jostled, and Ashe watched shyly for a moment before reaching out to wrap her hand around it. The guard gave a soft murmur of appreciation, though he gently wrapped his fingers around her wrist to tug her hand off of him. "Ah-ah. You are getting spoiled tonight.~"

Rastakhan came to settle next to her as Za'kal scooted up between her legs, rubbing the head of his cock into her muff to spread her fluids around a bit more. The king seemed a tad bit jealous, but he knew he'd have to wait regardless. He didn't want to hurt her, and Za'kal knew that, too. The smaller troll began to push into her, groaning quietly as he filled her up. She huffed loudly, rolling her head to the side to look at Rastakhan as she was momentarily claimed-- he just smirked, and reached down to pet her cheek with his finger.

"Go easy on her, Za'kal. I do want to  _ try _ tonight."

"Of course, Your Majesty.~ I'll warm her up for you, eh?"

Za'kal gently held her hips as he started to thrust into her, staying in a sitting position as he just pulled her to him with his thrusts. She was a mess almost immediately, keening and whining as she was slowly fucked. Getting watched by  _ Rastakhan _ of all people definitely upped the arousal factor here, and  _ boy _ was he watching.. he idly stroked himself well within her sight, making eye contact as he let a low groan of satisfaction slip from his throat. Za'kal was watching him, too, urged to be a little rougher with Ashe as a result. Arousal feedback loop. 

The guard kept at it until he was nearing his limit, eventually pulling out to pump himself to his climax, emptying his seed over her belly and chest with a happy little whimper. Probably wouldn't have been good form to fill her up with Rastakhan right there... and he very likely would have started a fight over it, later on. Ashe was left whining with need, looking helplessly up at the trolls as she squirmed and panted. Rastakhan scooted himself over to take Za'kal's place, letting the guard go lay beside her instead and dote on her.

"I cannot guarantee this will not hurt a liddle bit. Is dat okay?" the king questioned, wanting to be  _ sure _ she knew. He was very positive she did know, but the actual confirmation was important. She just nodded and squirmed her hips at him, legs raised to fully expose her stretched slit. Chuckling, he positioned himself appropriately and began to push into her as slowly as he could, giving her plenty of time to either adjust to his size, or protest that it was too much.

And thankfully, she didn't opt for the latter. It  _ was _ painful, but she could stand it.. Za'kal's preparation had worked decently enough, and she was so lust-drunk it didn't matter anyway. He made it about halfway before he pulled back again, giving her a light reprieve from the stretching before he started in again. By some miracle, he managed to fit himself into her.. though she was  _ extremely _ full as a result, enough that there was a visible bulge in her form. The king would wait a bit, to be sure she was fully adjusted, affectionately rubbing his hand against one of her legs. Za'kal gave an impressed hum, leaning in to give her some careful smooches.

"Ey, look at dat..~ Ya be a liddle trooper, huh?" he teased, between kisses. She could only give a strained whine in response, sticking her tongue out as she panted. Ohhh boy her guts were definitely about to get rearranged. Worth it? Absolutely. Za'kal took the opportunity to claim her mouth, briefly running his tongue along hers before pulling back again. He could almost feel the heat coming off of her face, after that.

Rastakhan waited until Za'kal had moved back before he slowly began to thrust, drawing out gradually before bringing his hips back to hers. Taking it nice and gentle, don't wanna hurt her. She just stared up at him with her mouth hanging open, wheezy little huffs the only thing escaping her throat aside from a whine or two. It was an odd feeling to be so stuffed, of course-- even if it felt  _ fantastic _ , she was still getting used to it. But the king had all the patience in the world for her, and was just fine with keeping his pace slow and steady. Za'kal just watched, eventually reaching to take one of her hands so she had something to squeeze.

"You feel so good, liddle huntah..~" the king purred, just looking down at her in admiration as he slowly thrusted in and out. "Is this okay?.."

"Mm.. m-mmhm.." She kept eye contact with him, squeezing Za'kal's hand almost in time with the slow pushes. "... ... .. . can.. go faster.."

Rastakhan hummed, giving her thigh a pat-pat in acknowledgment before he gradually quickened his pace. It drew louder moans from her almost immediately, as she tilted her head back and shut her eyes. He took that as a decent enough sign to keep going-- if he did start to hurt her, he trusted that she would let him know one way or another. His climb towards a rougher pace remained slow, but eventually all that could he heard were the gentle smacks of his hips against hers and her absolute  _ keening _ that echoed through the room. After a moment he slowed so he could change position, pushing her legs back further so he could trap them beneath himself as he leaned over her. 

_ Now _ he really started to go at her, growling deeply as he tucked his head down.. he couldn't kiss her with their height difference, but he could definitely reach Za'kal, briefly clacking their tusks together as the guard leaned up to give him the intimacy he wanted. Again, not something unfamiliar to either of them, apparently. Heightened panting drew their attention back to her, and Za'kal slid down to pet at her before carefully laying his hand across her throat with a chuckle. Not wrapping around it, for the sake of not upsetting Rastakhan-- but just enough pressure for her to start crying out in earnest, her walls tightening around the king as she rode out a decidedly lengthy orgasm.

Rastakhan kept at it until he was sure she was done, then got a teensy bit rougher with his thrusts, bucking hard into her for a few moments before he finally emptied himself within her with a low, deep rumble. He kept her pinned like that as he gently rocked his hips, stirring her, being _very_ sure that he claimed her as thoroughly as possible.. while making direct eye contact with Za'kal. _She_ _is mine_ , the look seemed to say. Za'kal just grinned a little, being the first one to break said eye contact, offering a shrug.

Once he felt it was enough, the king slowly pulled himself out of her, cock still twitching here and there. Almost immediately a gush of fluids seeped from her, dribbling onto the bed. He laid next to her, opposite Za'kal, and began to pet over her sweetly and press kisses against her head as she let out a residual whimper. "Dere, dere.. we got you, we will get you anyting you need." He knew she had to be hurting a  _ little _ bit from all that. Taking her to the healers was a bit out of the question, unless it was absolutely necessary.. but he'd seen no blood in that mix of their fluids, so he suspected she was just sore. And she was.. but it wasn't going to compare to how sore she was going to be in the morning.

After thorough amounts of cleaning and aftercare, the trio rested, with both males occasionally bickering possessively in Zandali and hugging her in either direction. Very very gently, of course. They were  _ mostly _ playing; it was common to fight over a mate, after all. Ashe had no issue with it, giggling weakly as she was intermittently tugged back and forth. It eventually resulted in her being sandwiched between the two trolls, facing Rastakhan with her head between his tusks while Za'kal hugged around her waist.

She could get used to this. Which was great news for everyone involved, because it happened damn near every other day after that.

Of course, all good things would have to come to an end, eventually.


	8. Chapter 8

Some weeks later, the Siege of Dazar'alor occurred, and was traumatizing for the entirety of the region. News of Rastakhan's death reached her ears shortly after the fight had ended, and Ashe was completely inconsolable, her cries heard throughout that floor of the palace. Za'kal, wounded but alive, took the minimal amount of healing required to stay on his feet and went to her to just hold her close in silence. She sobbed into him even far after she'd run out of tears, and the troll would occasionally have to remind her to breathe, rubbing at her ribs with his palm.

Her wailing, unfortunately, drew attention to someone that  _ entirely by luck _ she'd yet to actually meet-- Talanji. The princess cleared her throat in a partially-polite, partially-offended manner, glaring daggers at the human that had dared be  _ in her father's chambers _ after what had happened. Za'kal stood up immediately and moved in front of her, holding his arms out.

"W-Wait, Princess--"

"What is dat  _ human _ doing in heah?!" 

Talanji marched forward and effortlessly pushed the guard aside with one hand while readying a bolt of magic in the other. Ashe visibly cowered, covering her head with both arms as she curled into the fetal position on the bed. Za'kal recovered quickly and threw himself over her, staring back at the princess with an exhausted, fearful gaze. She paused.

".. Why do you protect her?"

"She is not part of dis. Believe me, Talanji. Please."

Talanji sighed, letting the magic dissipate. Her distressed reaction was incredibly understandable, and neither Ashe nor Za'kal could blame her for it. "You have one minute to explain to me why dis human be in heah."

Za'kal sighed in relief as the attack was abandoned, and sat up properly, pulling Ashe up into his lap. She clung to him, face tucked in his chest. "She is, ah.. was, well.." God, there was no way to avoid how awkward this was going to get. ".. ya fa'da's  _ companion _ ," he said bluntly, and Talanji immediately pinched the bridge of her nose.

"I see. Dat is not someting I wanted to learn today."

"It was equally unpleasant for me ta tell ya about it, trust me. ... I can take her from de room, if she be making ya uneasy by being here."

"I would appreciate it, Za'kal. I have.. many tings to do in here."

Za'kal nodded, and scooped Ashe up-- stumbling when she reached out to grab a pillow off the bed in the process. Talanji immediately reached out to snatch it from her, lip curled in disgust. "Do not  _ take _ anyting from heah. It is not yours."

Ashe flinched, and resumed hiding herself against Za'kal. He frowned a little, rubbing her back. "Sorry, liddle huntah.. de Princess gets de final word on dese tings." When he got no response, he sighed and just shuffled his way out of the room, leaving Talanji to do what she needed to do.

Had it not been for how often the hunter appeared on this floor of the palace, the trolls here would probably be even more hostile than Talanji had been-- instead, they just shared looks with her, a few sniffling here and there. Ra'tika was found leaning against the doorway to the dining hall, and looked up at Za'kal tiredly as he approached.

".. She be takin' it as well as de rest of us, I imagine?"

"Mm. Doesn't help Talanji just got to meet her. Kicked her out of de bedroom. I undastand why, but.. it is a liddle cruel."

"Mebbe she will let her back in after some time has passed. I do not tink she will do anyting wid dat room."

"You are probably right about dat. But we should figure out where to put her, in de meantime.."

"You cannot take her to de barracks?"

"Not a wise choice, I tink. De ot'ahs might react badly, considering.. and it would not be a good idea to leave her alone with all of dem, aside from dat."

"Ah, right.."

They shared a minute of silence, before Za'kal sighed. "Mebbe we can put her in Zul's old chambers. I do not tink anyone touched it after it was ransacked. Might still be a bed in dere."

"Mebbe. Ya want me to take her for a bit? Ya need to get some more healing, Za'kal.."

"I am fine. I will not bleed out."

" _ Za'kal _ ."

Ra'tika folded her arms at him, staring. He eventually relented and carefully handed Ashe over to her, and she clung to her awkwardly before extending her legs so she could stand on her own. Ra'tika steadied her, frowning when the hunter remained silent.

. . . .

It had been a tough few days after that. Talanji had not changed her opinion of her much, but nobody could really blame her, especially with the trauma so fresh in her mind. Trauma, and anger. She wasn't angry with Ashe specifically, but she did have a lot of anger in her at the moment. Anger towards the Alliance, anger towards Bwonsamdi, anger towards her father for the things he never told her. 

Ashe had been relocated to Zul's former private chambers, which had been stripped of damn near everything except a torn-up bed and whatever stone furniture was built into the room. She hated it in there, but it was the safest place for her. Za'kal had managed to sneak back into Rastakhan's chambers to grab some pillows -- they had retained the former king's scent -- and this both soothed the hunter and also sent her back into a state of deep mourning. She mostly slept, and didn't eat, even with Za'kal offering to feed her entirely and with Ra'tika doing her best to make something the hunter wouldn't refuse.

The day of the funeral came, and went. She hadn't been permitted to join, and instead spent the entire day in a mental haze. There would've been no guarantee as to how she'd react to seeing him, anyway-- and Za'kal strongly felt that Rastakhan wouldn't want her to see him like that, in any case. But the fact she'd been denied of even having the  _ choice _ gutted her, and only extended her depressive fasting.

After two weeks of this, Za'kal, Va'ki, and Ra'tika became increasingly distressed. They weren't entirely sure how long a human could go without eating, but her state worried them. She barely moved, was starting to lose weight, and was rarely awake with her face always buried in one of the tear-stained pillows. Desperate, the two guards checked over Rastakhan's room for anything of his that might at least get her to sit up -- when Za'kal spotted the single tome wedged incorrectly into the bookcase, the one that had been written and bound by human hands. 

He had grabbed it out of curiosity at first; he had no idea the former king had anything that  _ wasn't _ written in Zandali. But when the stone fell out and landed in his hands, he froze. He knew exactly who that stone would call, just from the magic it emitted. He wrapped his hand around it and squeezed, then sighed, before taking the book and stone back to Ashe.

He put the stone back inside of the tome before he set it down near her on the bed, and her visible half-lidded eye slowly focused on it.. and widened. Za'kal frowned, reaching out to pet her. ".. I don't know if you wanted dis, but. I fig'yaed I may as well give it to ya. ... Jus' be careful." And with that, he left her to her privacy.

It would be another hour before her hand reached out to fumble with the book, fingers delving between the pages to pull Bwonsamdi's shrine stone out of the hollow spot. She stared at it for a while before pulling it closer, tucking her arm back against herself. Nothing was said, but the familiar film still enveloped the room after a few seconds, and Bwonsamdi sat there in front of the bed like he'd been there the whole time.

"I wondered when ya would be tryin' to call on ol' Bwonsamdi,~" the loa teased, reaching out with his massive hand to stroke at her head as carefully as possible. She just stared at him, tired in every way. "Ya want ta see him, eh? Ya be sure about dat?" Her nod made him grin, and he gently waggled a finger at her. "Now, ya see, I don't be doin' favors for free.. ya gotta give me sometin' in return."

Her gaze averted, and she looked down at herself slowly, before looking him up and down with probably the most pitiful expression the loa had ever seen. "Hah! No, no, no'ting like dat. But I be flattered it be de first ting ya tink of.~" His finger moved to rub under her chin. "Since de king be no longer needin' his little assistant.. mebbe ya can be mine instead. If ya be wantin' to see his soul, ya gonna have to get up outta dis bed and get yaself well again.. ya still be of use ta me if ya die, but not de use I want from ya."

The implication that she would have to do something before getting to see him just made her even more tired, and her head sunk into the pillow more. Bwonsamdi clicked his tongue in disappointment. "Tch. Ya be wantin' to see him first?" She nodded. "Ya gonna promise ta do what you be told? Gonna make a deal wit' ol' Bwonsamdi?~" Another nod. Bwonsamdi shifted his hand to offer it to her instead, and she hesitated before reaching out to wrap her hand around his finger. A little crackle of magic jumped from him to her, and she trembled violently for that moment until it passed, alarmed. He resumed petting her. "Shhh, shh.. ya be jus' fine. Give me a moment, eh?"

Bwonsamdi stood and went to lean back against the far wall as magic began to gather in the middle of the room, and gradually, Rastakhan's spirit manifested between her and Bwonsamdi. He looked confused at first, facing the loa, before he turned around and saw her on the bed. The former king froze, as did she. Slowly, he approached and knelt next to the bed, reaching out to lay a ghostly hand on hers. Immediately, she started to cry, trying desperately to reach out and  _ hold _ him but being wholly unable to. He watched with a crestfallen expression, cooing softly to try to soothe her.

"You are okay, liddle huntah. It is okay. I am sorry dat I had to leave you so soon." He frowned, as she eventually gave up trying to hold him and laid there on the bed, hiccuping. Rastakhan looked back at Bwonsamdi with a light scowl. The loa tilted his head, grin spreading.

"If ya be wantin' more den to just talk, she gonna have ta keep dat deal for a lonnnng time, Rastakhan.~"

" _ Bwonsamdi _ _!_ You already made her make a deal with you?! You are very cruel, how could you be such a fiend an' take advantage of her mourning--"

**_"Ya best be watchin' what ya say to me, Ya Majesty,"_ ** Bwonsamdi warned, eyes giving a dangerous little flare. The threat there was incredibly real; Rastakhan was entirely at the loa's mercy. The old king backed down nearly immediately, expression wrenching into something more distraught as he looked back at her. Ashe had been listening, and had slowly sat up, out of tears but still looking very much like she could start crying again at any moment. 

"... I-I'll do.. whatever you.. want me to." Her voice was weak, and shaky. First time she'd spoken in days, if not weeks. Rastakhan's eyes widened as he tried to protest, but Bwonsamdi quite literally silenced him with a wave of his hand, ignoring his voiceless burst of anger and concern as he strode over to crouch in front of the human.

"Ya be sure of dis?~" he asked, his voice soft and questioning, but not without a underlying tone of something more sinister. When she nodded, he let out a bark of a laugh and touched her hand with his own, strengthening her binding to him with a burst of magic that threatened to sap what little energy the poor woman had. She wheezed as an ethereal smoke briefly enveloped her being before fading, and Rastakhan worriedly stepped forward. Bwonsamdi went back to the wall he'd been lounging against, and released the silencing magic he'd put on the poor old king.

Rastakhan went to kneel in front of the bed as Ashe scooted forward, reaching out to steady her-- and  _ succeeded _ . The contact made them both jolt in surprise and stare at each other before Ashe all but  _ flung _ herself at him, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck as he gathered her up against him. The squeeze he gave her caused her spine to pop loudly, though she didn't seem to care in the slightest.

"I am sorry, Ashe. I am so, so very sorry. I did not know tings were going to turn out dis way," he murmured quietly, peppering her with little smooches and careful nuzzles. She did her best to return all of these affections despite how lightheaded it was making her to be this active. "If I had known.. dere would have been many more tings I would have said to you before I left dat morning."

".. it's okay.." she whimpered, nuzzling her face up under his jaw like she used to, seeking comfort in the weight of his head against her own. And he was more than glad to give that comfort to her. 

"No, it is not.." Rastakhan just sat there with her, rubbing at her back. ".. I had been hesitating to tell you dis, because I did not.. wish to scare you off, or make you tink you had to do more for me. And.. even now, you do not have to respond to this, if you do not wish to, but.." His rubbing slowed, and he pulled her back just enough for him to lean his head down at press his forehead to hers, gazing into her eyes. 

"I love you, okay? Ya made de rest of dis old troll's life a whole lot bettah by takin' dat offer I gave you when we first met. You were very good to me, and I hope dat I was just as good to you."

Ashe mentally froze three words in, just staring at him with wide eyes before she seemed like she'd cry again-- and instead, just pushed her head forward to give him a hard, desperate kiss. He laughed a little in surprise before reciprocating, rubbing at her back to calm her again as he softened the affections. 

Bwonsamdi chuckled from the other side of the room, watching them with a tilt of his head. The chuckle startled Ashe-- she'd forgotten about him-- and she shyly pulled away and gave him a glance before tucking her face against Rastakhan. (Not that it helped, with him being.. well, a spirit.) "Ohoho, don't be gettin' shy cos' ol' Bwonsamdi's watchin'. T'ought you liked dat.~"

Rastakhan shot him a tired look before petting at the human. ".. Do not mind him. He will say whatevah he pleases." Finally he just sort of glanced around the room, and frowned.. this was definitely a room he recognized as Not His, and the fact he was in here at all soured his mood a little. ".. Why are you in dis room? Did staying in mine make you too upset?"

"... .. got kicked out, by.. your daughter... wanted to kill me, I think.. Za'kal protected me."

" _ Ah _ ... well, I do not tink I can blame her for dat.. but I am glad dere was no fight between you two."

Ashe nodded, with a sigh. This room was unfamiliar, and smaller, and.. kinda stinky. She missed how  _ warm _ Rastakhan's room was, and all the space it had, and how it just smelled like  _ him _ all the time. It was home. Rastakhan noted her shift in mood and kept up his petting.

".. I know. I am sorry. Dere will not be much to change her mind about it. But, maybe Za'kal can help you make dis room your own, mm?"

".. yeah.. .. .. but what's the point? I'll just get kicked out entirely, eventually.."

"No, dat will not happen. Talanji is angry, but she is not cruel. If you stay here, you will be safe. Za'kal and Va'ki will protect you, and Ra'tika will feed you."

Bwonsamdi tilted his head a little as he listened, then rumbled, chuckling. "If no'ting else, ya can come stay wit' me~" Again, Rastakhan looked at him, but said nothing. He was no longer in any place to act like he had authority, especially with the loa. And Bwonsamdi knew it, too-- he just  _ griiiinned _ . "Or maybe ol' Bwonsamdi can just come visit ya once in a while. Since ya be one'a me likkle followers now, after all~"

"I do not know what you expect of her, but leaving de palace will put her in danger, Bwonsamdi. She cannot collect souls for you."

"I be tinkin' of what she can do, don't ya be worryin' ya scaly head abou'dit. Mebbe I just be wantin' some company, eh?"

_ "She is not physically capable of providing--" _

"Why ya godda be fil'ty, mon? I like de company of de living, sometimes."

Ashe just shrunk and tucked herself against Rastakhan again as the two bickered. He held her close, petting down her spine. Bwonsamdi huffed, irked by Rastakhan being so argumentative with him, and reached out to place a skeletal hand on the former king's head. "Ya be tryin' me patience. Ya got five more minutes, an' den you be goin' back."

"But--" Rastakhan started, but the squeeze around his skull shut him up-- only for Ashe to perk up in distress, immediately reaching up to try to push Bwonsamdi's hand off. Instead he grabbed  _ her _ , pulling her up into the air by her wrists and letting her dangle. She whimpered in pain, and then he dropped her on the bed.

**_"Don't be fightin' wit' me,"_ ** Bwonsamdi warned, before he turned to go back to his designated leaning spot against the far wall.

Rastakhan crawled up onto the bed and wrapped his arms around Ashe protectively, holding her close and kissing against the top of her head. He murmured apologies in Zandali-- she'd heard a few of those words enough times to understand him, and she just leaned her head up to return the kisses. ".. i-it's okay, I'm okay.." she murmured, trying to reassure him that the act of retaliation hadn't done any lasting damage. 

Eventually he quieted, and just rested his forehead against hers. Their last few minutes were spent like that, eyes closed, just savoring what little time they had before Bwonsamdi cleared his throat. With a sigh, Rastakhan reluctantly pulled himself away after giving her one more kiss. She started after him as he moved off the bed, hesitant to speak-- but finally managed to find her voice as Bwonsamdi approached. "I-I love you too--" she squeaked out, and Rastakhan looked back at her with a soft, sad smile before he disappeared with the loa.


	9. Chapter 9

For the first time in a while, Ashe slowly nibbled away at a piece of fruit. Za'kal and Ra'tika were happy to see the human eating again, even if it wasn't an actual meal. Va'ki had talked with Talanji on the others' behalf and had been granted permission to relocate a few things from Rastakhan's room to hers; he brought over the bedding and mattress, replacing Zul's bed with it. The human was quick to nest in it once she was done eating, laying where Rastakhan had been, pulling the largest pillow close to wrap her arms around it.

She hadn't told them about Bwonsamdi, or seeing Rastakhan's spirit. She figured it was something that should remain a secret.. if word got out that he came back to see a human.. things could get ugly. But she was fine with keeping that secret, for her own sake. It was something she'd cherish, even if the circumstances were.. terrible.

Za'kal, off-duty today, sat on the edge of the bed, smiling down at her as he stroked a hand down her side. "Good ta see ya eatin'. We were gettin' real worried about ya." When she smiled at him a little, he paused before he just completely leaned over her, embracing her. "... ... I be sleepin' bettah now knowin' ya won't be starvin' to deat' while I'm gone."

She blinked at first, then slowly released the pillow in favor of holding Za'kal's arm instead. He pressed kisses against the side of her head, careful to not whap her with his tusks in the process. A soft knock at the door had him perk up and glance towards the door, his grip on her tightening-- but when he saw Va'ki's face peek in, he relaxed.

"What be de news, mon?"

"She ate a liddle mango. Already lookin' much bettah. Ya on break?"

"Good.. and yeh, jus' started."

Va'ki slowly approached and sat where Za'kal had been as the off-duty guard rolled onto the bed proper. Ashe gave a weak giggle as she was rolled a little with him, his arms around her waist. She looked up at Va'ki with a tired smile, and he looked at her for a moment before glancing away. She took no offense; both Za'kal and Rastakhan had commented on Va'ki's difficulties with emotions.

Slowly, she reached out to take one of his hands and squeezed a finger in appreciation. The stress drifted off of the guard in waves, and he shyly looked back at her before carefully wrapping his hand around her much smaller one. Za'kal  _ 'ooooo' _ ed, teasing his fellow guard with a grin.

"Ya holdin' hands now? Dat be preddy scandalous, Va'ki.~"

"Don't be mean ta me, you know how I be.."

"Yeh, I know, I know. It's jus' cute."

Va'ki huffed, only to be distracted from their banter by a tug on his hand-- Ashe was trying to pull him down, as fruitless as the effort was with their difference in muscle. But he slowly eased himself down next to her, facing her, the tip of one of his small tusks poking into the bed. Za'kal let her go so she could wiggle closer to Va'ki and nuzzle up under his chin. Naturally, this simple gesture short-circuited the poor troll's brain and he just laid there, anxious, his breathing shallower.

"It be okay, Va'ki. She won' bite ya throat out."

"Ssshhh.. shut u-up, Za'kal.." he stammered, glaring at the other troll before looking down at the human. With careful movements, he wrapped an arm around her, just barely resting it on her in case she disapproved-- but of course, she didn't. She just cuddled closer, giving a tiny relaxed sigh. Even if she and Va'ki rarely spoke or saw each other, she did trust him just as much as she trusted Za'kal or Ra'tika.

She reached up to gently play with his hair, ruffling his sideburns(??) slowly and affectionately. Za'kal watched from behind her, just smiling as Va'ki gave a noise of approval and closed his eyes. Ashe leaned up after that and gently pressed a kiss against his cheek before settling back, watching the troll's expression go from confused, to startled, to thoroughly embarrassed in the span of about two seconds. He shifted his head forward like he'd wanted to reciprocate, but couldn't quite get the nerve up.

"Ya can do it, Va'ki. I believe in ya~" Za'kal teased quietly from behind the human, earning himself another glare from his friend.

"Stoppit.." he whined, before looking to the human again. She just smiled at him and inched her head forward again, as if trying to give him reassurance. With an abundance of caution, Va'ki brought his head forward enough to give her a tiny kiss on the lips. She gave a giggle and cuddled up to him again once he pulled away.

"You're so cute, Va'ki.." she murmured, tucking her face under his chin again.

"I just. Not be used ta dis. Am sorry."

"It's okay, it's nothing to apologize for, promise."

"I jus' don' want'a be disappointin', eheh.. Za'kal beat me to ya."

"So?"

Za'kal snorted. "Jus' becos I be bigger than ya don't mean ya be inferior, Va'ki."

_ "Ya jus' gonna sink me ship before I get it sailin?!" _ Va'ki snapped back at him, thoroughly embarrassed. Ashe pressed a kiss against his cheek again, and it distracted him pretty quickly. "-- a-ah.. Affectionate liddle ting.."

"She likes ya just fine, I tink.~"

"Mmff.. it be seemin' so. .. Mebbe I'll.. be back latah tonight. Can't be gettin' too cozy.. still gotta get lunch."

Ashe gave him a little nuzzle and a nudge. "Go eat.." she murmured, before scooting backwards to get all up in Za'kal's business again. The off-duty guard chuckled and wrapped his arms around her waist, peering at the lightly flustered Va'ki.

"Yeh, go eat n'jack yaself off so ya don't be standin' at attention in more den one way."

_ "ZA'KAL--" _ Va'ki covered his face and gave a muffled yell into his hands before rolling off the bed. Za'kal just cackled.

"I am done wid you. I cannot believe you--" the other troll stammered, giving a grunt in frustration as he left the room. 

The hunter was a little amused, but also a little concerned.. ".. You don't gotta be so mean to him, Za'kal.."

"Eh? Ah, no, we always like dis. We jus' playin'."

".. You're sure?"

"Preddy sure. I ask him latah n'make sure he's okay, yeh?"

She nodded, and gave a content sigh as he squeezed her middle. Even if she'd only eaten a tiny bit, she felt a lot better. And Za'kal was more than happy to know this, and even happier to cuddle with her all damn day until Va'ki made his return that night in casual attire. Za'kal waved him over to the bed.

"Eyyy, Va'ki. Ya good? I didn't mean ta upset ya, if I did."

"Eh? No, I be fine. Jus' tired, an' full."

"See, told ya Va'ki got tough scales," Za'kal commented to Ashe, giving her another squeeze.

Va'ki slowly climbed into bed with the two, giving an excited little rumble at the prospect of Cuddle Time with his little human crush. Za'kal grinned and let her go, and she shifted closer to tuck herself against the other troll's chest. She squeaked as her more consistent cuddle buddy pressed a kiss against the back of her head, gently clacking his tusks to Va'ki's.

"Tink I'll go get meself some dinnah.. ya want anyting, liddle huntah?"

".. more fruit, maybe.."

"Okeh.~ I be back soon."

Za'kal slipped out of bed and left the two alone, and Va'ki immediately began to fidget, hesitantly laying his arm over her again. She was so much smaller than him.. he knew she wasn't exactly  _ fragile _ , but he couldn't help but treat her in such a way. "... T'ank you for.. lettin' me have dis."

".. mmmm.. why wouldn't I..?"

"Fig'yaed ya wouldn't want to, yanno.. get close ta someone again so soon."

"It... feels nice to. N'.. I don't think Rastakhan would want me to just shy up again.."

"... .. Yeh, I tink so, too. Ya seem more active when ya get some socializin'."

"Well.. that's 'cuz you and Za'kal make me happy."

"Ehehe.. ya gonna make me blush more, mon."

She leaned up to kiss his chin, and he smiled broadly before tipping his head down to capture her lips in a soft, affectionate kiss. The hunter was happy to lean into it, giggling softly when he broke away to start carefully kissing away towards her jaw. Encouraged, Va'ki dared to give a nibble to her neck -- only possible due to his short tusks -- and she gave a quiet gasp that ended in an equally quiet whimper.

Va'ki pulled back to peek at her, surprised at the sound. "Did dat hurt?"

"N.. no, it.. was nice.." she murmured in response, giving him a shy glance. "... you're the first one to manage to  _ get _ to my neck." Rastakhan and Za'kal had such huge tusks, they couldn't do it without it being terribly awkward. 

She saw Va'ki's eyes light up a little brighter before he leaned in to resume his soft nibbling, soon turning to light suckling. The human groaned quietly as she was marked, and Va'ki let his hand slide down to her rear so he could get himself a brief handful. Her being so patient with him really seemed to let him squeeze past his prior anxiety; he mostly had been worried that she wouldn't  _ want _ him, after Za'kal.. and especially after Rastakhan.

The little lovebites continued on for a few minutes before Za'kal came back with his food and some fruit for Ashe-- and Va'ki froze, glancing at him out of the corner of his eye. Za'kal stared for a moment before giving an amused chuckle and went to settle on the far edge of the bed so they would have room to be affectionate, and so he could eat. Just a big ol' haunch of meat for him tonight, still on the bone.

Va'ki rumbled quietly before he went back to giving Ashe tiny kisses against her throat. She was all but ragdolling for him at this point, letting him do as he pleased, perfectly happy with whatever he got the courage up to do. Slowly he shifted to roll her onto her back, wedging one knee between her legs before shifting the other over. She looked up at him with a decidedly  _ soft _ expression, and the shy troll glanced away as his cheeks darkened.

"Y-Ya too sweet, ya know dat..?" he murmured, reaching down to grasp her hips and pull them up against his own for what he had planned to be some mild grinding. He hadn't quite realized she was  _ only _ wearing that robe this entire time until that moment, briefly mentally stalling out when he felt warm, wet flesh against the thin layer of cloth covering his groin. His ears drooped, and he looked to her again, startled. " _ O-Oh _ ."

Za'kal watched idly as he munched on that chunk of meat, turned just enough to see Ashe's expression shift from that soft look to something a little more anxious when Va'ki abruptly stopped. He swallowed his current mouthful before speaking. ".. Well don't just leave her hangin', Va'ki. Ya not be all bark an' no bite, yeh?"

Va'ki looked back at him with an uneasy glare before glancing down at his little human partner. ".. Jus' forgot we nevah looked for anyting for her to wear  _ undah _ de robe.." He slowly brought a hand in to massage his thumb against her clit, lifting the robe up just enough to peek as he did so. The tips of his ears went as dark as his cheeks when she  _ moaned _ , her eyes trained on his despite how shy he was about keeping eye contact. He gave a soft, warm sound as he shifted, lightly grinding his bulge against her muff as he rubbed at her clit. She huffed and bit one of her knuckles, gaze slipping down to just watch his hand as he worked at her.

Eventually Va'ki couldn't take it anymore, and moved his hand from her for the sake of freeing himself. He paused, keeping his hand over his dick before moving it away to let her see. Za'kal's teasing had been truthful; he really wasn't impressive by _troll_ standards.. but by human standards, he was just fine. And she was sure to let him know this by lifting her legs a little higher to show herself off to him, eager. His ears perked up as he was given this privilege, and he slowly maneuvered himself to line up with her slit before pushing inside.. he was just as eager, it seemed. Sweet little noises escaped Ashe as he slid in to the hilt, just the perfect size for her -- and vice versa. He wasn't used to actually nearly _bottoming_ _out_ with someone.

He shifted slowly to lean over her, bracing himself with his elbows on either side of her before he began to thrust, slow to start but quickly gaining speed and force. Her squeaks of pleasure only encouraged him, and Za'kal's persistent gaze was a bit of a turn-on for both of them. The other troll gave a hum, moving like he would nudge his way in to give Ashe a little smooch-- but instead, he captures Va'ki's lips for a sweet, short kiss. Va'ki just gave a breathy laugh, briefly faltering with his thrusts before catching his rhythm again. The hunter had seen it all and just stared up at both of them while still squeaking with the occasional thrust, and Za'kal just grinned at her as he settled beside her. Va'ki was quickly getting rougher, and Ashe was all for it-- and so was Za'kal, apparently, as he reached a hand down to free himself and started openly stroking himself while leaning his head against her.

It didn't take too much longer for Va'ki to reach his limit, thrusts becoming erratic. Ashe keened softly for him when she hit her climax first, and the subsequent squeezing pushed the troll right over the edge, filling her up quite nicely as he held himself against her hips. He panted softly, scooting back to pull out just so he could pepper her face with kisses before flopping over onto the side that Za'kal wasn't on.

Not that it mattered, of course, because once Va'ki had settled, Za'kal sat up and quickly positioned himself to push in before Ashe could even register what he was doing. "Sorry, liddle huntah~" he murmured, not actually sorry about it at all as he began to pump his hips against hers. She didn't exactly have any complaints, but was taken completely off-guard by it, stretched further by his size and embarrassed about how  _ wet _ the thrusts sounded as he fucked her with as much strength as he could put into it without hurting her. She could only offer squeaks and huffy moans, and Va'ki inched closer to press his forehead against the side of her head.

"Ya likin' dat..? Ya like gettin' passed around? Ehehe.." he teased, pressing a kiss to her cheek.

"Tihh _ hhh. _ . Tink she does, Va'ki,~" Za'kal commented, reaching down to angle her hips up a little more so he could pound her more effectively. Thankfully he didn't last nearly as long as the other troll, growling deeply as he came within her like Va'ki had. He nearly collapsed on her, keeping himself braced up slightly so he could carefully kiss at her without jamming his tusks either into her or the bed. She was glad to return the kisses despite her exhaustion, and Za'kal eventually backed off so he could pull out of her. ".. 'Ey, Va'ki, look'it dis.~"

Va'ki scooted over to him to watch as Za'kal held her folds open, their mixed seeds easily dribbling out of her stretched slit and onto the bed. "Ehehehe..~ Dat is quite a sight." He patted at Ashe's leg when she whined in embarrassment. "Hey, it is okay..~ Ya look real cute like dis..~"

Za'kal hummed in agreement before letting her have her dignity back, gently patting her muff. He stood to go to the washroom to fetch a clean cloth, returning a moment later with it so he could tidy her up. Va'ki murmured soft praise for her in Zandali, cuddled up against her side.


	10. Chapter 10

The next day, both guards were -- unfortunately -- on duty far from her room. She assumed she would just spend the day alone, and dozed off and on as a result, a little sore from the prior night's fun but not entirely unhappy. The fourth time she ended up awakening, she was met with the large, glowing gaze of a particular loa, barely a foot away from her face.

"Hey dere, likkle huntah.~"

A world record may have been set when she flung herself across the room with a screech, like a startled animal. And yet, Bwonsamdi was even faster, managing to catch her and kept her from injuring herself. He held her in one massive hand wrapped around her torso, and she squirmed faintly, almost reaching up to try to pry his hand away before the memory of being held by her wrists flickered into her mind. She let her hands drop, and kept her gaze on the floor. Bwonsamdi chuckled and moved to sit cross legged on the ground, letting her rest in his lap in the 'hammock' of sorts formed by his skirt.

"Ya scare so easy. Ya tink I be here ta hurt ya? Wouldn't have let ya wake up if I was," he rumbled, voice dropping a little towards the end. Ashe snapped her attention to his face, eyes wide and fearful. He looked down at her in return, carefully brushing a curled finger under her chin. "Ya be perfectly safe wit' me, likkle ting. As long as ya behave.~"

Shaky breaths were all she could manage as he touched her, and he seemed to take note of it, eventually letting his hand drop a bit. He turned his palm over and uncurled his fingers, curious to see what she'd do if he offered it to her like this-- and as he'd thought, she very cautiously reached out to touch around one of the fleshy parts of his hand. All the while, she kept glancing up at him nervously, as if questioning if it was what he wanted. All she would get was a rumbling little laugh in reply, but that was enough. Slowly, her fingers explored his palm further, and then his fingers, her own gently tracing his phalanges. The act of doing so seemed to calm her down a little.. if he'd let her do this, surely he was at least somewhat fond of her. Not that she didn't think so already, from what he'd already done for her.. but there was something about the physical contact that cemented it in her mind.

"See? Ya be just fine wit' ol' Bwonsamdi," he purred, gently closing his hand around hers, giving her plenty of time to withdraw if she felt unsafe-- but when she didn't, his grin got a little wider. "I tol' ya I just be wantin' some company. Even de loa get a likkle bit starved for dis kinda ting." 

She nodded, looking at her own hand gently entombed within his much larger one. Felt kinda weird, to touch such smooth bone. And he was so gentle, too. He kept his eyes focused on her, fiery gaze almost softening somewhat as if he were attempting to keep her from getting spooked again. Eventually she looked back up at him, still meek and hesitant about the massive loa. "Is.. that really all you want from me?" she questioned, almost too quiet to hear.

Bwonsamdi chuckled, and gave her hand an itty-bitty squeeze. "I be fine wit' just dis. But if ya have ideas, I wouldn't be opposed ta hearin' dem.~" he teased with a low tone, curling forward to lean in even closer to her. She stiffened up immediately, and he could almost smell the spike of flustered panic that coursed through her body. "And judgin' by dat reaction, I tink ya been puttin' some t'ought inta dat. Ya got a sof' spot in dere for dis ol' loa, hmm?" He gently tapped the back of his fingertip against her chest, over her heart. 

Grumbling, she withdrew her hand and folded her arms. The loa just laughed quietly and began to pet her. "Go back ta sleep, ya tiny ting. I'll keep ya warm til ya likkle boyfriends come back from duty, eh?" .. Well, as warm as a large dead loa could keep her, anyway. He liked to think he was a _little_ warm, at least. But apparently his skirt was cozy enough for her to sleep in-- because sure enough, the human had fallen back asleep within a few minutes, curled up beneath his petting hand.

The return of Va’ki and Za’kal was met with very little fanfare.. mostly because the two Rastari were shocked into silence the moment they saw Bwonsamdi. The loa brought a skeletal finger up to his mouth in a ‘shhh’ gesture, before pointing down in his lap at the sleeping Ashe. But it wasn’t Za’kal that approached first-- it was Va’ki, spurred into bravery if only because he worried for his favorite little human, but the anxiety left him in a droop of his shoulders upon seeing that she was just fine and dandy.

With plenty of glances up towards Bwonsamdi to ensure that he wasn’t about to get slapped across the room, the soft-spoken troll slowly leaned in to scoop the hunter up into his arms bridal-style. “.. ‘E-Ey, Ashe.. wake up, we be back..” he murmured, nudging his head in against hers in a shaky sort of nuzzle.

She awakened with a whisper of a murmur, blinking her eyes open to gaze upon the decidedly non-loa troll that held her in his arms. A smile! Her boys were back! “Oh, hi..”

“Ya gonna ‘oh hi’ us wit’ us findin’ ya in de Loa of Graves’ lap like dis?” Za’kal piped in from the doorway, folding his arms.. He looked amused, but there was still that tinge of concern in his eyes, especially with how he kept looking back at Bwonsamdi. 

“Tch! She be juuust fine where she was, ya overprotective ting,” Bwonsamdi commented, waving a hand dismissively. There was no clear offense in his voice, thankfully, but Za’kal still flinched away from that moving hand regardless. “Dere be no’ting wrong wit’ a loa visitin’ dey followahs, eh?”

“F… followah?” Za'kal shared a look with Va'ki before staring back up at the loa.

"Ooohohoho, she nevah told anyone den, eh? Guess she be learnin' a ting or two from ol' Rastakhan."  
"It be too soon for dat kinda joke."  
"Says ya."

Ashe made a noise of discomfort, distracting the three from their conversation. But by the time the two Rastari looked up again, Bwonsamdi was gone, leaving no trace of himself behind aside from a brief chill in the air that quickly dissipated. Va'ki sighed, moving to sit on the edge of the bed with the hunter in his lap.

".. We are gonna be talkin' about dis latah, liddle ting," Za'kal murmured, shaking his head. "But for now, it is time to settle down.. did you want anyting from de kitchen, eit'ah of you?"

"Mmm.. see if Ra'tika has any of those little filets left. I have been craving dem all day.."  
"De ones wit' de bacon wrapped around dem?"  
 _"Yesss…"_

"Now I want one.." murmured the human, snuggling against the Zandalari's chest. 

Va'ki just chuckled, and Za'kal performed a little mock salute before he turned on his heel and left the room. Ashe received a little peck on the cheek before being deposited in the sheets, and the remaining troll soon stood so he could rid himself of his armor and lounge comfortably with her. She found herself tracing over his muscles with her fingers, up his chest and around his neck and shoulders, then back down towards his sternum. He was more than content to let her, smiling warmly and rewarding her with soft giggles when she would briefly run her hand low enough to tickle his belly.

It wasn't until some time had passed that Va'ki made a noise of concern, turning his gaze towards the door.

 _Where was Za'kal? Maybe he stopped to go to the bathroom or something.. he was probably fine. Hopefully. Or Ra'tika made him wash dishes in exchange for food. Loa forbid._

His thought process trailed off as Ashe nuzzled up under his chin, giving a tiny peck to his throat as she sighed quietly. He readjusted his hold, those strong arms of his wrapped around her snugly. 

_Well.. maybe a little nap would be fine in the meantime.._

. . .

An hour or two later, Za'kal finally returned with the promised food, leaving the door open behind him. Va'ki jolted awake, staring over at his co-guard with an unamused scowl.

"Sorry, got a liddle distracted~"  
"Ya rude ting, leaving us to wait! We could have wit'ered away inta no'ting."  
"Ya, ya, I be sure. Or liddle Ashe would have jus' started nibblin' on ya biceps."  
"What exactly did ya get distracted by, anyway--"

Va'ki cut off as Ra'tika poked her head into the room, a mischievous little grin playing across her features. His gaze traveled back to Za'kal and-- oh. Those were sure some bites on his neck. The noise he made in surprise was enough to finally awaken Ashe, and she blinked her eyes slowly while managing a tiny wave towards the new guest.

"Za'kal had ta _pay_ for his food and wait for me ta finish up for de night," Ra'tika said, that grin not fading even for a moment. 

"And den she just about finished _me_." Za'kal set the tray of food down on the bedside table, then reached over to ruffle Ashe's hair. 

"Oh, no, dat will come latah in de month."  
"Dat be a threat or a promise?"  
"Yes.~"

"Just as long as we get a warning first, eh?" Va'ki snickered softly as he sat up. 

The chef took this as an invitation to just sit right there in his lap, planting a smooch to the now-flustered guard's cheek. "I promise no'ting. How tings be ovah here? Ya doin' okay, Ashe?"

"Mmm.. yeah, just.. sleeping a lot."  
"Ya mind still probably needs to recover from everyting. I know I be sleepin' a lot more den before, too.."  
"I guess.. I don't really know what else to do with myself, either."

Ra'tika hummed. "If tings weren't so tense, still, I'd see about havin' ya help in de kitchen.."

"No, no, I don't.. want to upset Talanji by having her think I poisoned her food, or something.."  
"Dat be a valid point. Last ting she needs ta be doing is avoiding meals, she be stressed enough."

"Do you talk to her a lot?"  
"Used ta. Now she be too busy ta stop by. But I don't be takin' any offense; havin' her as de new Queen is gonna make tings reeeal chaotic for a while. Lodda mons don't like dat de Loa of Graves be mixed up in dis, too."  
"Why not?"  
"Eh.. dey don't trust him. Tink he be malevolent. But I know ol' Bwonsamdi be a good loa."

"Speaking of.." Za'kal interrupted, now armorless, soon plopping down on the other side of Ashe. "Why was said loa in here bein' sweet on ya, liddle ting? Callin' ya a followah?"

Ashe leaned on him, as one (1) buff arm snaked around her waist. "He.. did me several favors, I thought it would only be right to be his follower in return."

"What he be askin' of ya, t'ough?"  
"He.. hasn't? He just seemed to want company."

There was a long pause between the Zandalari, and they all shared a look of concern before looking her over. Za'kal gave her a squeeze.

".... He didn't try ta fu--"  
"No!" _Smack._

"Okay, okay!" Za'kal grinned, letting Ashe go after said smack to his arm. She huffed and reached over to finally take her food and started cutting it up to eat.

Ra'tika laughed and shook her head. "I be unsurprised. Most of de living dat go to see Bwonsamdi be dere ta pray or beg, not to chat. Can only imagine how it must be ta be livin' as long as he do, and have nobody ta talk ta."

"Don't the other loa talk to him, too?"  
"Sometimes, but I imagine only havin' de same mons around all de time gets boring. Probably just wants someting _new_ ta talk about."

The hunter nodded. She could understand that. "Well.. I don't mind just talking with him, he does seem.. nice, for a loa of death."  
  
"Just be careful around 'im," Za'kal said flatly, earning himself a little flat look from the royal chef. He just shrugged to her. It wasn't that he didn't trust Bwonsamdi -- he too was confident that the loa wasn't going to pull any funny business -- but he was still bitter about the events leading up to and directly after Rastakhan's death. Probably would be, for a long while. Not that anyone could blame him in the slightest.

Ra'tika sighed softly and scooted across the bed to cuddle up to the grumpy, too-tall guard. Seemed very much like she was going to spend the night here with them.. or maybe just steal Za'kal away once everyone else fell asleep. Both were pretty good options, in her opinion. Ashe moved over to Va'ki to make room for her, regardless.. and also so she could also reach over and steal a little piece of bacon off his plate.

"H-Hey! T'ief! Dat be mine!"  
"Eat faster, then."  
"I be _savoring_ it!"  
"Savor _this_." Ashe leaned up to smooch Va'ki's cheek, and then stole another piece of bacon while he was distracted.

Tonight was gonna be an okay night.


End file.
